Silicon Valley Tech Leaders React To Derek Chauvin Guilty Verdict

SILICON VALLEY, CA — Silicon Valley and Bay Area tech leaders reacted to the guilty verdict Tuesday in the trial of Derek Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer who knelt on George Floyd’s neck last year. A jury found that Chauvin was guilty on all counts.

Facebook Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said he hoped the verdict brings “some measure of comfort” to Floyd’s family, friends and “everyone who can’t help but see themselves in his story.”

“We stand in solidarity with you, knowing that this is part of a bigger struggle against racism and injustice,” Zuckerberg wrote on Facebook.

Apple CEO Tim Cook tweeted that the verdict was just. But he added a quote by Dr. Martin Luther King that read: “Justice for Black people will not flow into society merely from court decisions nor from fountains of political oratory. Justice for Black people cannot be achieved without radical changes in the structure of our society.”

Kayvon Beykpour, the CEO of Periscope, tweeted simply: “Justice.”

Salesforce Chairman and CEO Marc Benioff posted a quote from a story in Time about Floyd’s legacy on Twitter that read: “Something that will last. In the spot where Floyd died — where the trinkets of almost every faith’s mourning’s traditions and an outline of Floyd’s body in blue paint can be spotted — the outdoor memorial still stands.”

After two weeks of jury selection in the trial, 12 jurors were selected out of more than 300. The jurors were tasked with deliberating on one of the most controversial cases in modern history. Chauvin was convicted Tuesday with second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.

"Thoughts and prayers to George Floyd's family and what they've had to endure since May 25, 2020," said Derek Anderson, CEO of Palo Alto-based Bevy, in a tweet. "George inspired me to try to be better the past year. Long ways to go but today's verdict was the right next step towards progress."

Law enforcement agencies all over California were preparing for potential unrest as the nation anxiously awaited the verdict of the trial. Last summer, a groundswell of activism swept the nation and the Golden State after Floyd’s death on May 31.

The verdict — which was reached in about 10 hours — was read Tuesday afternoon. Chauvin’s sentencing hearing will take place in eight weeks.

Chauvin faces a max of 75 years in prison under Minnesota law.

“Our justice system has prevailed today,” said SoFi CEO Anthony Noto on Twitter. “Let today's verdict not only be relief, but a demand for further action to end systemic racism & social injustices. Sending our prayers and love to the family of George Floyd.”

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg called the verdict a “small measure of justice.”

“But real justice would be for George Floyd to be alive and in the arms of his family,” Sandberg wrote on Facebook. “This brutal tragedy is one page in the much larger story of systemic racism, oppression, and injustice in our country.”

Patch editor Kat Schuster contributed to this report.