Josh Woodward may not be a familiar name outside Silicon Valley, but inside the global AI industry, the 42-year-old Google executive has become impossible to ignore. In a matter of months, Woodward has overseen a dramatic turnaround that pushed Google’s Gemini from a defensive product into a direct threat to OpenAI’s dominance, triggering an internal “code red” at OpenAI led by CEO Sam Altman.
Woodward currently leads the Gemini app while also running Google Labs, a rare dual mandate inside Google. He took charge of Gemini in April at a moment when the product was widely perceived as lagging behind OpenAI’s ChatGPT in both mindshare and momentum. Within months, that perception shifted sharply.
Under Woodward’s leadership, Gemini’s monthly active users reportedly climbed from around 350 million in March to roughly 650 million by October. While ChatGPT still commands a larger weekly audience, the gap narrowed fast enough to set off alarm bells across the industry. Gemini’s surge was not driven by incremental updates, but by bold, consumer-facing launches designed to go viral.
One such moment came with Nano Banana, Google’s image-generation feature, which exploded in popularity over the summer. The tool generated billions of images in weeks and, according to internal discussions, briefly strained Google’s own infrastructure due to overwhelming demand. That kind of traction had a secondary effect: it pushed Gemini to the top of the Apple App Store rankings, unseating ChatGPT and signalling a shift in public sentiment.
The competitive impact became undeniable when Google unveiled Gemini 3, a model positioned as outperforming OpenAI’s flagship systems across several benchmarks. The announcement coincided with a sharp rise in Alphabet’s stock and was followed almost immediately by Altman’s internal memo at OpenAI. The directive reportedly paused several ambitious initiatives, including advertising and commerce experiments, as OpenAI redirected resources back into strengthening ChatGPT’s core experience.
What sets Woodward apart inside Google is not just technical execution, but his ability to move quickly within a company known for process and caution. Colleagues describe him as unusually effective at dismantling internal blockers. Through internal escalation systems, teams are encouraged to flag obstacles directly, allowing Woodward’s organisation to resolve issues without long approval chains.
This approach has defined his track record even before Gemini. Products launched under his watch at Google Labs, including NotebookLM, gained early traction by focusing on real user problems rather than abstract demos. Woodward is also known for engaging directly with feedback on social platforms and forums, relaying complaints and suggestions straight to engineering teams.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
