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New York Times deputy tech editor Quentin Hardy is heading to Google.

Hardy tweeted Monday that he had accepted an offer to head editorial for Google Cloud, which includes G Suite and Google Cloud Platform. Google confirmed the news and said Hardy’s role was new, but declined to share further details, such as what exactly the job entails.

“Like all new undertakings, the specifics will work themselves out,” Hardy replied via Twitter direct message. He said he starts Feb. 6 and will be splitting his time between San Francisco and Mountain View.

He went on to espouse the benefits of cloud computing: “I truly believe that what cloud represents is a dramatic transformation of business, economics and much else. It will take place over years, but the nexus of sensors / mobile computing, large cloud systems and AI will remake the world on a scale of electricity, automotive power, etc. ...

“I know that sounds grandiose, but this is a dramatic change in its earliest days. I'm looking forward to seeing it firsthand.”

Some personal news: I'm leaving The New York Times to be the head of Editorial at Google Cloud. — Quentin Hardy (@qhardy) January 23, 2017

It is a hard professional decision to leaving the Times, and this move is a mark of what a great opportunity I’ve got at Google. — Quentin Hardy (@qhardy) January 23, 2017

Hardy was with the Times more than five years, capping off a career that included reporting and editing roles with the Wall Street Journal and Forbes going back to 1987.

Hardy has been based in the San Francisco Bay Area for roughly the past two decades, according to his LinkedIn profile, which he said was current.

The move has inspired congratulations and humor, some surprise and a little dismay to see a veteran journalist leave the field. A few tech journalists expressed gratefulness that Google seems committed to explaining all that cloud nonsense.

lol. someone called @qhardy w/pitch. he was like "cool awesome, btw i just announced 15 minutes ago that im leaving the NYT to go to google" — ಠ_ಠ (@MikeIsaac) January 23, 2017

@qhardy huge loss for the NYT. but very glad somebody will be explaining this stuff in a way that makes sense to the rest of us... — Sarah G McBride (@mcbridesg) January 23, 2017

@qhardy is this an alternative fact? or real? — Laura M. Holson (@lauramholson) January 23, 2017

News that @qhardy is going to Google shows the company's efforts to explain, every step of the way, what they are doing with AI — Dave Lee (@DaveLeeBBC) January 23, 2017

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