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Sun Valley: Schmidt Didn’t Want to Build Chrome Initially, He Says

By

Julia Angwin

Jul 9, 2009 10:14 pm ET

Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt said Thursday evening that, for six years, he resisted the idea of building what became the Chrome browser and (soon) operating system, before succumbing to the enthusiasm of Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page.

Associated Press

Google co-founder Larry Page, left, and Google CEO Eric Schmidt, speak to reporters at the annual Allen & Co.’s media summit in Sun Valley, Idaho, July 9, 2009.

In a wide-ranging on-the-record press conference, Messrs. Schmidt and Page described the origins of the combination browser/operating system.

“At the time, Google was a small company,” Mr. Schmidt said. “Having come through the bruising browser wars, I didn’t want to do that again.”

Eventually, however, Messrs. Brin and Page hired some Firefox developers who built a demonstration of Chrome. “It was so good that it essentially forced me to change my mind,” Mr. Schmidt said…

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