Donald Trump has claimed that Google Chief Executive Sundar Pichai refused to help him rename the Atlantic Ocean, after previously telling reporters that the technology executive had called him to apologise during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The two episodes, separated by more than six years, offer contrasting accounts of the US president's interactions with one of the world's most powerful technology companies.
Speaking at a rally in South Carolina on 21 October, Trump recounted asking Pichai whether Google Maps could accommodate another geographical name change.
According to Trump's account, Pichai explained that oceans were different because they covered many countries and asked him not to pursue the proposal. Trump said he would probably abandon the idea, although he also joked about calling the Atlantic Ocean the American Ocean.
The account has not been independently confirmed by Google, which was approached for comment by The Guardian following Trump's remarks.
Trump's Google Maps Renaming Plans Meet an Obstacle
Google Maps now displays the Gulf of America and Lake America for users in the United States, following Trump's renaming efforts and executive orders.
The president signed an executive order directing federal agencies to use the name Gulf of America instead of Gulf of Mexico. Google subsequently adopted the replacement name for American users, while retaining the original name in parentheses in search results. Users in Mexico and Canada continue to see the original designation.
Trump also pushed for Lake Ontario to be renamed Lake America amid a trade dispute with Canada. He signed an executive order requiring US federal agencies to use the alternative name, and Google Maps now displays Lake America for users in the United States.
These changes do not mean that the geographical names have been universally replaced. The labels displayed by a mapping service can differ according to the user's location, while other countries continue using the established names.
Unlike the previous changes, the Atlantic Ocean proposal would concern an ocean used by countries across multiple continents. Trump did not announce a formal renaming process.
'No, no, no. This time I'm not doing it,' Trump recalled Pichai saying, before quoting him as adding: 'Oceans are different, sir. They cover a lot of countries. Please don't ask us to do that.'
Trump then told the audience: 'So I'll probably pass. Should I pass it? I think let's keep it the Atlantic Ocean.'
He also joked that European countries would be delighted by the decision. His remarks did not establish whether he intended to pursue the idea further.
Trump's 2020 Claim That Sundar Pichai Called to Apologise
In March 2020, Trump claimed that Pichai had personally called him to apologise over confusion surrounding a coronavirus screening website.
The claim was reported by multiple outlets also documenting Trump's remarks the following day. However, these reports did not independently establish that the call took place. Google declined to comment on Trump's claim to WIRED, while others reported that the company had nothing to share about the alleged call.
According to a report from 15 March 2020, Trump made the claim during a White House coronavirus briefing. He praised Google's communications team but did not clearly explain what Pichai was supposedly apologising for.
The controversy followed Trump's announcement that 1,700 Google engineers were working on a coronavirus screening website. However, the initial testing tool was being developed by Verily, Alphabet's life sciences subsidiary, and the reported staffing figure was not independently established.
Verily was developing a pilot screening tool for the San Francisco Bay Area, while Google separately worked on providing coronavirus information through its services. The distinction showed that the initial project was more limited than Trump's announcement suggested.
Neither episode independently establishes what was said in the private conversations between Trump and Pichai.
