Google CEO Sundar Pichai to testify before US House in November
The search giant didn't show up before Congress earlier this month.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai.
After skipping a congressional hearing in August, Google says it will appear before the US House of Representatives.
CEO Sundar Pichai has agreed to testify before the House Judiciary Committee. The hearing will take place after the midterm congressional elections in November, said House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California, according to Reuters.
The announcement follows a private meeting Pichai reportedly had with top Republican lawmakers, set up by McCarthy, to discuss a variety of topics, including the Google's alleged political bias in search results. Google has denied it has such a bias.
"The last two days' discussions with a wide range of congressional leaders were constructive and informative," said Pichai in an emailed statement on Friday. "As we've done for over a decade, including testifying to Congress 22 times since 2008, we remain committed to continuing an active dialogue with members from both sides of the aisle, working proactively with Congress on a variety of issues, explaining how our products help millions of American consumers and businesses, and answering questions as they arise."
"I am personally committed to testifying before the House Judiciary Committee in due course," Pichai added. It was earlier reported by The Wall Street Journal that Pichai would appear before the committee after the November election.
The search giant was summoned to testify before Congress earlier this month along with Facebook and Twitter. The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence invited Pichai and Larry Page , CEO of Google's parent company Alphabet. Google offered to send its senior vice president of global affairs instead. The committee rejected the offer, and Google didn't show up at the hearing.
The no-show angered committee members, as the hearing discussed matters regarding data protection, foreign interference in US elections and political bias. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg both testified at the hearing.
McCarthy's office didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
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