Comment by xnx
9 hours ago
I've seen tiny tiny hints from the outside that Jeff Dean was dealing with too much internal BS. Two examples that come to mind: Having to deal with Timnit Gebru fiasco, and even chips in the TPU series getting marketing names (Trillium and Ironwood) before switching back to more standard numbering.
I have no doubt that internal Google friction is one of the reasons they are moving. But the Gebru incident was almost seven years ago now. It is very unlikely to be a proximate cause.
I doubt numbering vs names on TPU releases even crosses Jeff's radar. It's not the kind of thing he cares about.
Yes. I'm not privy to any real insider gossip, but I read all his tweets and watch all his public speeches. He made an offhand comment about the TPU naming. I probably overinterpreted that, but I took it as a sign. There should have been a team around Jeff Dean that acted as an absolute shield for any BS. If Jeff disagrees with anyone at Google outside Sundar/Sergey, the strong onus should be on the other person to justify their stance.