# Google Foundation's Doctor Brilliant interviewed in The Guardian

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2008/02/02/google-foundation039s-doctor-brilliant-interviewed-guardian/
- Published: 2008-02-02T11:06:59+00:00
- Author: Howard Lake

Larry Brilliant, the head of Google’s $2 billion foundation, is interviewed in today’s
Guardian. In [Doctor Brilliant](http://www.guardian.co.uk/saturday/story/0,,2251071,00.html),
Bobbie Johnson asks about Google.org’s priorities and direction.

Dr Brilliant has been head of the Google Foundation for two years, and two weeks
ago announced its first recipients. Far from traditional charities, the beneficiaries
are organisations addressing renewable energy investments and disease monitoring.

The foundation received an initial investment of $175 million (£88.3 million) but
Google will be adding more – $2 billion according to The Guardian.

## Advertisement

Brilliant’s approach is based on experience as a World Health Organisation doctor
in the 1970s where he helped contribute to the eradication of smallpox. He realises
that some change takes considerable time and is not simply an application of cash
and technology. He admits to having concerns when he was invited to head up the 
Google Foundation: “I was particularly concerned at the impatience of engineers…
I used to teach my students that their schemes wouldn’t be successful until two 
things happened: that they would be able to run without you, and that you knew the
names of the grandchildren of the people you started with: that’s because it takes
a generation.”

The Google Foundation seems to be in very good hands.

www.google.org

 * **[Trusts and Major Donors Manager at Army Benevolent Fund](https://fundraising.co.uk/2008/02/07/trusts-and-major-donors-manager-army-benevolent-fund/)**(
   7 February 2008)
 * **[New Chief Executive at One Parent Families|Gingerbread](https://fundraising.co.uk/2008/02/13/new-chief-executive-one-parent-familiesgingerbread/)**(
   13 February 2008)
 * **[PF’s 50 Most Influential poll closes tomorrow](https://fundraising.co.uk/2008/02/28/pfs-50-most-influential-poll-closes-tomorrow/)**(
   28 February 2008)