J. Walker

President of Global Affairs, Chief Legal Officer & Company Secretary, Alphabet

Search every verified J. Walker interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Kent Walker, President of Global Affairs at Google and Alphabet, has recently spoken about the importance of Europe’s digital competitiveness and the role of AI in economic growth. In a February 2026 fireside chat in Ireland, he said that Ireland’s regulators are “at the vanguard of shaping European policy” for the AI era and argued that Ireland’s upcoming presidency of the Council of the EU is a moment to “refocus Europe on an optimistic version of the future.” He has also warned that a draft EU AI code of practice “has taken something of a wrong turn,” saying it would require heavy bureaucratic review of all general-purpose AI models and create risks of data poisoning and cyber attacks. In other appearances, Walker has discussed the geopolitical dimensions of technology. He stated that the United States and China are in a “neck and neck race” on AI, citing data that China now leads in 57 of 64 critical technology categories. He has also argued that AI gives advantage to defenders in cybersecurity, and that a “diplomatic equivalent of arms control talks” is missing in the current technology competition. On AI regulation, he has said Google believes “AI is too important not to regulate” but that the biggest risk may be “not proceeding with AI at all” given its potential to address climate change and other social problems.