It feels like an open secret, but that's still not evidence. I was expecting something like leaked emails from execs explicitly talking about it or something.

It feels like an open secret, but that's still not evidence. I was expecting something like leaked emails from execs explicitly talking about it or something. I kinda doubt Google is having anyone do actual known-useless-to-all work just so they don't work at a competitor, but I think it's probably very possible that preventing someone form working at a competitor is _part_ of the value-add Google sees in hiring someone, which means they don't need to see quite as much clear value in what they'll be working on at Google.