Can Google engineers have side projects?
I’ve been considering developing apps or games on the side with potential commercial use in future. At Apple even what you do in your own time is owned by them apparently, is it the same at Google? Also, I am on an H1B visa What’s the worst that can happen? TC: USD 220k (Sunnyvale, California) YOE: 2
I think the general rule of thumb is to keep the two entirely separate, including conversations. You simply don’t talk about it.
Thank you for the suggestion. What if it takes off and I become very famous because of it (probably not lmao), can they sue me or stake their claim over it?
that sounds like pied piper
If you're in California, you can pretty much ignore that part of your employment contract (unless you use company resources or internal data, etc). Look up moonlighting california, it's one of the main reason why silicon valley is where it is. Though your problem is likely going to be H1B visa.
Thank you for your response, what if I develop it here and then release it after returning to my own country permanently?
You should be fine. If you release it after you leave the company, they will have to prove you built it there and all that. They are not gonna bother with that unless it's worth billions of dollars and it's likely not going to be worth that much unless you put in your full time work and lots of luck, etc.
Is your project a new search engine called “Not Google”? If so, I’m sure Google will be okay with it
What if you are using your personal laptop?
Yes that is what I intend to use