Susan Wojcicki, former CEO of YouTube, dies at 56

Former YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki, one of the most prominent women in technology, has died at age 56 after a two-year fight with cancer, according to a statement from her husband.

“It is with deep sadness that I share the news of the Death of Susan Wojcicki”, Denis Troper wrote in a post shared on Facebook. “My beloved wife of 26 years and mother of our five children left us today after 2 years living with non-small cell lung cancer. Susan was not only my best friend and partner in life, but also a brilliant mind, a loving mother and a dear friend to many.”

“Her impact on our family and the world has been immeasurable,” he continued. “We are heartbroken but grateful for the time we spent with her. Please keep our family in your thoughts as we navigate this difficult time.”

Wojcicki was Google’s 16th employee, joining the company in 1999, and served as CEO of YouTube for nine years, from 2014 to 2023. She left the role in 2023, citing “personal reasons” and “family reasons.” She was succeeded by current YouTube CEO Neal Mohan.

“Today we @YouTube lost a teammate, mentor and friend, Susan Wojcicki,” Mohan wrote Saturday on social media platform X. “I was fortunate to meet Susan 17 years ago when she was the architect of the DoubleClick acquisition. Her legacy lives on in everything she touched @Google and @YouTube.”

Prior to her stint as YouTube’s CEO, she served as Google’s senior vice president of ad sales.

“Twenty-five years ago, I made the decision to join some Stanford graduate students who were building a new search engine,” Wojcicki wrote in a blog post the day he left YouTube. .It would be one of the best decisions of my life.”

She began collaborating with Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin shortly after they turned the search engine into a business.

Wojcicki rented the garage of his home in Menlo Park, Calif., for $1,700 a month before they moved into a formal office. During her stay, she worked with them to help refine their search engine, according to a statement from Google.

“She is as important to Google’s story as anyone else, and it’s hard to imagine the world without her,” said Google CEO Sundar Pichai. wrote on X, following the news of his death. “She was an incredible person, leader and friend who had a tremendous impact on the world and I am one of countless Googlers who is better for knowing her.

Pichai said his journey was “inspirational by any measure,” in a statement to the Hill.

“As one of the first Googlers – and the first to take maternity leave – Susan used her position to build a better workplace for everyone,” he added. “And in the years that followed, her advocacy around parental leave set a new standard for companies everywhere.”

Wojcicki was one of the first women to reach the top of the male-dominated technology industry and was an inspiration to those who followed her.

Former Facebook COO Sheryl hailed Wojcicki as a confidant and mentor.

“When I joined Google, Susan was one of the first people I met. She taught me the business and helped me navigate a growing and fairly chaotic organization early in my technology career,” she wrote in a post online. “She was the person I went to for advice over and over again. And she was that person for many others as well.”

Sandberg worked at Google with Wojcicki before moving to Facebook.

“As one of the most prominent women leaders in technology – the first to lead a major company – she was committed to expanding opportunities for women across Silicon Valley,” he added. “I don’t believe my career would be what it is today without her unwavering support.”

This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story