Okay, when I post these stories, Michael wants to die and Phoebe wants to puke. However, this one has a twist because it involves one of America’s largest fortunes.
Apparently, Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, has just married his long-time sweetheart Anne Wojcicki. Both bride and groom are 33 years old and from what I can tell seem to have some links going back years. It seems that Anne’s older sister, Susan, a VP at Google, had rented to Sergey and Larry Page the garage in which they founded Google. Some time later Susan introduced Anne to Sergey and…blah blah blah…Mazel tov!
The couple had a private wedding on an island in the Bahamas and will live in Palo Alto. Google has just invested 4 million bucks, along with some other investors, in a start-up headed by Anne called 23andMe that will try to enable people to collect genetic data about themselves. Yuck! But we’ll ignore the notion of a world where Google can track every move you make on the Internet while a Google sponsored start-up learns everything there is to know about your genetic makeup because…this is a love story.
According to Top SEO blog, which got the story from Mercury News, Eugenia Brin, Sergey’s mother, mentioned in a 2001 interview that she hopes Sergey will find someone who’s got wit similar to his and who is hopefully Jewish as well. Anne is considered quite bright and if interviews I’ve heard with her sister are any indication, super-bright. And she’s Jewish. Her father is a Stanford physics professor with 3 daughters, while Brin’s father is a mathematics professor in Maryland and his mother is a research scientist (they arrived in the US from Russia when Sergey was 6 years old). Of course, this bodes well for assistance with homework their potential children will be getting at home.
This story is receiving media coverage for an obvious reason: Google’s phenomenal success and Brin’s resulting wealth. He is worth somewhere between 14 and 16.6 billion dollars as of this writing. Well, money isn’t everything (although if Sergey would like to share, oh, about 0.1% of that wealth with me, I wouldn’t object and neither will my wife) and marriages need foundations far stronger than money to thrive. Without knowing the couple, it seems this is the case here. May the couple enjoy a fun, happy, fulfilling life together and hopefully it will include children and maybe also a connection to their Jewish heritage.
Update: Bnai Brith Magazine, of all place, did a story about Brin and Larry Page (whose mother is Jewish and whose father was an early founder and resident of the town of Arad in S. Israel). It gives some detail about Brin’s family’s decision to leave Russia.
Update for May 29: The NY Times has finally reported on this story (with a much better photo) and gives a good deal more information about Anne. Her father is the chair of the Physics dept. at Stanford and her mother, Esther, is a journalism teacher in a high school. Anne earned her biology degree at Yale where she was a competitive ice skater and played on the varsity hockey team. Her new company has raised ten million dollars in start-up capital and she co-founded it with an experienced life-sciences entrepreneur.
No…it’s just me, Chutzpah, wearing my Super Black Chutzpah costume (bet no one who doesn’t have an 8 year old knows that the other reporter in Spiderman 3 was named “Venom” once he got covered with the black alien parasite and that Green Goblin Jr. is actually “the New Goblin” .
I was turned into Venom when an asteroid delivered an alien into my children’s father’s house who claims to be a frum women but is just an evil villian wearing a sheitel.
Chutzpah says “I’ll say Mazel Tov IF I ever get laid again now that I am turning 43″… and the real me…well of course I’m schepping nachas! Best Wishes!
Seriously, Venom is more cynical than a single Upper West Sider. But I guess that’s what happens when your parents name you Venom.
I don’t think so, Venom. What’s with the negativity, aren’t you projecting a little?
Plenty of couples survive their hard times and have successful marriages that last a lifetime. They’ve been together through Google’s growth and I would think there’s been some serious pressure at times. Here they are anyway.
What ever happened to “mazal tov?”
I think this is a great story on many levels…young smart Jewish entrepreneur marries another young smart Jewish entrepreneur…it is the American Jewish Dream come true and a wonderful love story, even if she is just a starter wife and they will be fighting over custody in 8 years when he takes off with a shiksa. It’s beautiful and inspiring for now and thank you Middle for sharing.
I was wondering when you guys might catch this story. :-p
Holy cow! How did I miss this? Anne is also on the board of Reboot!!!
I still think that it would be great if every internet jillionaire contributed to some sort of fund to support writers and artists. And I say that with no degree of self-interest.
Yes, just inspirational indeed. With the added benefit of an almost dweeb cleavage shot too! In CA that’s worth billions… (OK Now you can…) Cheers, ‘VJ’
she’s hot, i’d do her
🙄
We can trace our elite Jewish blood-lines with this DNA technology. Bring it on. Also perhaps we can use some form of eugenics to perhaps ensure only the creme de la creme of the world (i.e. Jewish people) can breed.
Because Sergey is a geek and geeks seek geeks.
Um, because we’re no longer living in the second century BCE and love is a key part of the reason we marry?
Why would someone of his wealth and position marry someone his own age?