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"Okay Google, play 'Before He Cheats' by Carrie Underwood..."
By Bernadette Giacomazzo — Written on Jun 23, 2020
Last summer, ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt had given his "friend" a shiny piece of bling — namely, a huge sapphire ring — despite the fact that he was still married, and despite the fact that she's more than 30 years his junior.
And then, only about a month later, they broke up. Fast forward and now they're back together... again! What the heck is going on?
Who is Alexandra Duisberg, Eric Schmidt's girlfriend?
Here are some details to know about her relationship with Schmidt, and all the drama surrounding them.
Eric Schmidt was the CEO of Google, but stepped down, thanks to sexual misconduct claims.
Schmidt has been credited with single-handedly making Google into the multi-billion dollar company it is today. However, the year before Schmidt stepped down from the so-called "Alphabet" board, he stepped down as a member of the executive board of the company.
And these "step-downs" came shortly after allegations of sexual misconduct at the company started coming to light. (Sigh!)
"While Schmidt undoubtedly played a key role in Google becoming the behemoth it is today, his presence may have been a less appreciated one more recently. Just six months ago, Google came under scrutiny when The New York Times reported on sexual misconduct within the company.
The report included details of a $150 million payout to Android creator Andy Rubin amid a sexual misconduct inquiry. Schmidt was later named in a lawsuit accusing the company of covering up harassment by multiple executives," the report stated.
Classy.
Despite the sexual misconduct claims, Eric Schmidt is still viewed as a tech hero of sorts.
Alexandra Duisberg has a rather interesting connection to Google.
Now, this is the sort of thing that makes being an entertainment journalist rather fun.
Back in 2015, ABC News did a story about a dating app that was referred to as "Tinder for Snobs." Dubbed "The League," the app was founded by a former Google executive named Amanda Bradford, who created the app so that "the elite" could only connect with other "elite" members (that is, Ivy League graduates, the wealthy, and so on).
The app is so exclusive that there were over 100,000 people on a waiting list trying to get in there — but Duisberg was actually in the app, and she found her boyfriend (not Schmidt) through the app:
"Alexandra Duisberg is a self-described overachiever, a former Olympic skater and a fourth-year med student at the University of Pennsylvania, who said she probably wouldn’t be dating if it weren’t for The League. It’s people who are intelligent and passionate about making an impact in whatever space they are doing it... at least that’s how I view my career too.
Duisberg is now happily dating Josh, 31, a finance guy with a degree from Columbia Business School, who is also a pianist and a skilled archer. The two met at a League mixer, scheduled events put on by the company where online matches are encouraged to meet in person, and get some personal advice on their profiles from founder Amanda Bradford herself," they wrote.
Just going to go out on a limb here, but it's probably safe to say that "Josh" and Duisberg have "consciously uncoupled."
Schmidt's wife is making things complicated.
When married men make clear that they're not going to divorce their wives, it's probably a good idea to find another man that will commit to you without "complications" in his life. (Also, it's really disrespectful to the wife to continue to cavort with her husband once you know of her existence — and always remember that karma is a mirror, and what you do to another woman will ultimately be done to you.)
And all this comes into a different light when you consider that Duisberg was reportedly overheard telling friends that she and Schmidt "want" to get married and have children, but "his wife is making things complicated."
Duisberg is also the same age as Schmidt's daughter, Sophie, and although Duisberg isn't the first younger woman that he's been connected to over the years, he still has no plans to divorce his wife, Wendy.
Sounds like Schmidt didn't view the relationship with Duisberg in the same light as Duisberg did.
Schmidt denied that he was dating Duisberg, saying they're "just friends."
If this were an advice column, this writer would be advising Duisberg to go somewhere else and find someone else, especially after Schmidt all but told her she was, in a nutshell, crazy for thinking they'd be anything more than friends.
Schmidt reportedly made clear that what he gave her was a "friendship" ring, and he had no intention of marrying her, because they were not engaged.
She also reportedly isn't the first woman that Schmidt has "spent time with," including Lisa Shields, a foreign relations executive, and Vietnamese pianist Chau-Giang Thi Nguyen. He also had an affair with TV executive Kate Boehner for three years.
And Marcy Simon, a PR executive with whom he was spotted on the French Riviera with back in 2006, also received a gift of a similar "sparkler" from Schmidt back when she was dating him.
And in all of those cases, he didn't divorce his wife, he didn't marry the women, and he didn't give them any children. Take notes, Alexandra.
Is Schmidt not getting divorced because it's "cheaper to keep her"?
There may be a very good reason for Schmidt to remain married to his wife, despite having very public affairs: he may not have a prenup in place, which would mean that Wendy Schmidt would be entitled to more than half of his fortune if the couple were to divorce.
Schmidt's net worth is reportedly $13.8 billion, so getting a divorce could be quite pricey if he doesn't have a prenup. In 2017, he was also ranked at number 22 on the Richest in Tech list.
Hopefully, Duisberg gets some self-esteem and finds someone who will be actually willing to commit to her, instead of cheating with a married man.
They broke up.
Although we're not sure if they could actually have ever been described as a couple, they still reportedly went their separate ways only about a month after Schmidt had given her the ring.
At the time, a source said, “They have definitely not been spending time together — things have cooled off. They’re both traveling and haven’t seen each other over the past weeks.”
The source also added, “It was a stupid thing that he did. It was a friendship ring. It was not an engagement ring... Sometimes he treats people too well, and it leads to [misunderstandings].”
However, Schmidt and Duisberg never commented on the split themselves.
But now they're back on.
It looks like the "couple" are back on.
They reportedly have been spending time together since the beginning of the year and even quarantined together for awhile. Duisberg has also reportedly been telling her friends that they will be spending the summer together.
However, a source has refuted that, saying that they don't have any plans together: “Alexandra wants a baby and wants Eric to divorce Wendy, but neither is happening.”
Please, Alexandra, just move on already.
Bernadette Giacomazzo is an editor, writer, and photographer whose work has appeared in People, Teen Vogue, Us Weekly, The Source, XXL, HipHopDX, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Post, and more.
Editor's Note: This article was originally posted in July 2019 and was updated with the latest information.