Google CEO Larry Page has made his first public appearance after several months of silence. Literally silence, since he had lost his voice in June, according to a Google spokesperson.
On Oct. 16, Page spoke at Google’s annual Zeitgest conference in Paradise Valley, Arizona, according to the Wall Street Journal. He noted that he was “still a little hoarse but I’m here and I’m happy about that.” But mostly focused his talk on the antitrust regulations and map software.
A June Business Insider story discussed Page’s absence. One cause for concern, according to the article, was that Page had not posted on his Google+ account in nearly a month. (Although if not posting on Google+ is cause for concern we might all be nervous about those in our “circles.”)
But coming as it does on the heels of the tragic sickness and death of Steve Jobs, which was preceded by Apple’s absurdly vague and sugar-coated statements along the way, everyone can be forgiven for worrying that it’s deja vu all over again.
The Business Insider piece hypothesized that Page could have acute laryngitis, muscle tension dysphonia, benign lesions, or thyroid cancer. But the words speculation and speculative were used six times in 600 words, so Page’s illness is hardly a given.