Ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt warns U.S. tech workers: competing with China’s grueling 12-hour workdays means sacrificing work-life balance

Main Idea: Eric Schmidt says U.S. tech workers may need to accept worse work-life balance if they want to keep up with China’s intense work culture.

Key Points:

• Schmidt said he does not believe in remote work because he thinks it weakens U.S. tech competition.
• He pointed to China’s “996” schedule, or 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., six days a week, as the kind of effort tech rivals must face.
• Schmidt said younger workers learn best by being in the office and picking up lessons from older coworkers.
• The story says some Silicon Valley startups, especially in AI, are already pushing much longer hours, and Google itself has also tightened some remote-work rules.