Susan Wojcicki, YouTube's chief executive for nine years during a period of explosive growth for the video platform and one of Google's first hires, has died. She was 56.
Her husband, Dennis Tropper, announced her death after a two-year battle with cancer in a public Facebook post Friday evening.
“I am deeply saddened to share the news of the passing of Susan Vojski. My beloved wife of 26 years and mother of our five children left us today after two years of living with non-small cell lung cancer,” Troper wrote in the post. “Susan was not only my best friend and life partner, but she was also a brilliant mind, a loving mother, and a dear friend to so many. Her impact on our family and the world was immeasurable. We are deeply saddened, but grateful for the time we had with her. Please keep our family in your thoughts as we navigate this difficult time.”
“I am incredibly saddened to lose my dear friend @SusanWojcicki after two years of living with cancer,” Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet, said in a tweet on X. “She was as much a part of Google’s history as anyone, and it’s hard to imagine a world without her.” Pichai continued: “She was an incredible person, leader, and friend who had a tremendous impact on the world, and I am one of countless Googlers who are better for knowing her. She will be deeply missed. Our thoughts are with her family. Rest in peace, Susan.”
Vojsky joined Google in 1999 as its 16th employee, becoming the search engine's first female marketing executive. Initially, founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin ran the company out of their garage in Menlo Park, California. Vojsky struck the company's first deals to license search technology and led the initial development of Google Image Search.
In February 2014, Wojcicki was named CEO of YouTube. Google's appointment of Wojcicki, one of the company's top executives, reflects how important the video platform is to its advertising business. She stepped down as CEO of YouTube in February 2023, while remaining an advisor to the company.
During her various tenures at Google, Wojcicki oversaw product management for AdSense, Google Book Search, and Google Video, as well as the company's product distribution. Prior to joining Google, she worked at Intel, Bain & Co., and R.B. Webber & Co.
