May 31, 2026
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Sergey Brin told Google staff that working 60 hours a week is the 'sweet spot'
Google’s cofounder wants 60-hour weeks, and the internet is calling it billionaire math
TLDR: Sergey Brin reportedly told Google’s AI team that 60 hours a week and weekday office attendance are the best way to win the AI race. Commenters were not buying it, blasting the idea as billionaire hypocrisy and proof that big tech’s cozy era is dead.
Google cofounder Sergey Brin reportedly told workers on the company’s Gemini artificial intelligence team that 60 hours a week is the “sweet spot” and that people should be in the office every weekday as the race to build super-powerful AI heats up, according to the New York Times. He also warned that doing more than 60 hours could cause burnout, while taking a swipe at employees he says are doing the bare minimum. That alone was enough to send commenters into full popcorn mode.
The loudest reaction was basically: easy for a billionaire to say. One commenter dragged the vibe back to earth by asking whether this “sweet spot” comes with overtime pay, bigger stock grants, or just more free labor. Another went even more tabloid, pointing at Brin’s personal life and mocking the idea that a 10-to-12-hour workday sounds like advice from someone who’s cracked the code on balance. Ouch. There was also a wave of nostalgia from people saying Google used to be the dream “cushy” tech job, and is now turning into the same hard-driving office culture it once seemed above.
And yes, there was humor too. The comments had that classic internet mix of cynicism and meme energy: one person dryly noting the memo felt already outdated, another comparing big tech’s culture shift to “the frog in slowly boiling water.” The real drama here isn’t just Brin’s memo — it’s the growing feeling that the AI boom is becoming a convenient excuse for companies to demand more time, more office days, and fewer boundaries.
Key Points
- •Sergey Brin told Google employees working on Gemini that 60 hours a week is the productivity “sweet spot” and recommended being in the office every weekday.
- •Brin said competition to reach artificial general intelligence has intensified and that Google can win if it increases its efforts.
- •The article says Brin warned that working more than 60 hours can cause burnout, while also criticizing employees who work substantially less.
- •The memo does not change Google’s official policy of at least three in-office days per week, though some teams may be asked to come in more often.
- •The report presents the memo as part of Brin’s renewed hands-on involvement in Google’s AI work after ChatGPT’s release accelerated the generative AI race.