Google's CEO, Sundar Pichai, canceled a scheduled all-hands staff meeting—moments before it was scheduled to begin—meant to address concerns over a controversial essay published by former employee James Damore. 
 
 In an email to staff, Pichai explained that questions from employees had been leaked and that, in some cases, specific employees' identities were revealed, exposing them to harassment and threats. Instead of today's large-scale meeting, which was to be livestreamed to Google's 60,000 employees worldwide, smaller groups will meet sometime in the future. 
 
 "We had hoped to have a frank open discussion today as we always do to bring us together and move forward. But our Dory questions appeared externally this afternoon, and on some websites Googlers are now being named personally," Pichai said in the email. 
 
 Pichai said in the email that while the majority of Googlers were supportive of the decision, some wished the company would do more. He said some also worried about not being able to speak freely at work. 
 
 "All of your voices and opinions matter and I want to hear them," he said. 
 
 Earlier in the day, questions began to be posted to Google's internal message boards that were to be included in today's planned meeting. 
 
 "Can we get an update on progress toward identifying leakers?" one employee posted, saying multiple Googlers had their team pages leaked to alt-right sites, resulting in a death threat in one instance. 
 
 "I am a moderately conservative Googler," wrote one employee, "and I am and have been scared to share my beliefs. The loud voice here is a liberal one. Conservative voices are hushed. What is leadership doing to ensure Googlers like me feel *invited and accepted*, not just tolerated or safe from angry mobs?" 
 
 Another question asked how to combat Damore's assertion that Google has a lower bar for diversity candidates. "This is hurting minority Googlers because it creates the perception they are less qualified," an employee wrote. 
 
 Pichai, who said that parts of Damore's manifesto violated Google's code of conduct, had cut his vacation short to attend today's schediuled meeting. 
 
 "Clearly there's a lot more to discuss as a group -- including how we create a more inclusive environment for all," he wrote in an email sent to employees Tuesday. 
 
 Damore's 3,300 word manifesto claims there aren't more women in tech roles due to "biological causes" while also calling Google left-leaning with a "politically correct monoculture." The memo has spurred a conversation about systematic sexism in Silicon Valley, as well as what is and is not acceptable to debate in a workplace environment. ||||| FILE - This Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013, file photo shows Google's headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. Google’s new head of diversity has rejected an internal commentary from an employee who suggested women... (Associated Press) 
 
 FILE - This Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013, file photo shows Google's headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. Google’s new head of diversity has rejected an internal commentary from an employee who suggested women... (Associated Press) 
 
 MENLO PARK, Calif. (AP) — A 28-year-old former Google engineer who was fired over a memo he wrote about gender differences said Tuesday he's exploring all his legal options and has already filed a labor complaint over his treatment. 
 
 James Damore, whose memo over the weekend caused an uproar online, said in an email that he was terminated late Monday for "perpetuating gender stereotypes." He said that prior to being fired he had filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board and that "it's illegal to retaliate against a NLRB charge." 
 
 A filing by Damore with the board Monday alleged he was subjected to "coercive statements" while at Google. 
 
 A Google spokesperson said Tuesday that the company could not have retaliated because it was unaware of his labor complaint until reading about it in the media after his dismissal. As of Tuesday afternoon, the company said it had not been sent notice of the complaint by the board. 
 
 The board declined to comment. 
 
 Google CEO Sundar Pichai on Monday said in an email to employees that, while he supports free expression by company workers, Damore's memo crossed the line of the company's code of conduct "by advancing harmful gender stereotypes in our workplace." Pichai added that he was cutting short a family vacation overseas to address staff in a town hall Thursday. 
 
 "To suggest a group of our colleagues have traits that make them less biologically suited to that work is offensive and not OK," Pichai wrote. 
 
 The engineer's widely shared memo , titled "Google's Ideological Echo Chamber," criticized Google for pushing mentoring and diversity programs and for "alienating conservatives." 
 
 Google's just-hired head of diversity, Danielle Brown, responded earlier with her own memo, saying that Google is "unequivocal in our belief that diversity and inclusion are critical to our success." She said change is hard and "often uncomfortable." 
 
 Damore's memo, originally circulated on an internal Google discussion group, begins by saying that only honest discussion will address a lack of equity. But it also asserts that women "prefer jobs in social and artistic areas" while more men "may like coding because it requires systemizing." 
 
 The memo says biological differences between men and women may explain why women are not equally represented in the technology industry. 
 
 Damore's filing with the NLRB cites a part of the labor relations act that gives employees the right to engage in "protected concerted" activities. That includes being active on social media , though it's unclear if his memo, written on a Google Doc and submitted to an employee-only forum, qualifies for such protection. The first tweets about the post by other Google employees began Friday, though a company spokesperson said the document appeared to have been created weeks earlier. 
 
 The Twitter hashtag #JamesDamore was drawing a storm of opinions both attacking Damore for his memo and his qualifications as an engineer, and criticizing Google for his dismissal. 
 
 The battling messages come as Silicon Valley grapples with accusations of sexism and discrimination. Google is also in the midst of a Department of Labor investigation into whether it pays women less than men, while Uber's CEO recently lost his job amid accusations of widespread sexual harassment and discrimination. 
 
 Leading tech companies, including Google, Facebook and Uber, have said they are trying to improve hiring and working conditions for women. But diversity numbers are barely changing . 
 
 ___ 
 
 Associated Press writers Matt O'Brien in Providence, Rhode Island, and Barbara Ortutay in New York contributed to this report. ||||| Bloomberg TV 
 
 The former Google engineer behind a controversial memo on diversity efforts is standing by his views and says the company is trying to smear his reputation. 
 
 James Damore, who was fired by the search giant on Monday, defended his views during an interview Wednesday with Bloomberg TV. His 10-page manifesto sparked outrage from Google employees after being posted to an internal network. It argued biology prevents women from being as successful as men in the tech industry and criticized the company as having a "left leaning" bias. 
 
 Damore said he initially shared the memo a month ago, but "no one high up ever came to me and said, 'No, don't do this,' even though there were many people who looked at it," Damore told Bloomberg. "It was only after it got viral that upper management started shaming me and eventually firing me." 
 
 Now playing: Watch this: Fired Google engineer defends controversial memo 
 
 In his memo, Damore argues that women are underrepresented in tech not as a result of bias and discrimination. Instead, "the distribution of preferences and abilities of men and women differ in part due to biological causes and that these differences may explain why we don't see equal representation of women in tech and leadership." 
 
 Damore said that while some Google employees expressed support for him, it's not surprising no one from the executive ranks did so. 
 
 "There was a concerted effort among upper management to have a very clear signal that what I did was harmful and wrong and didn't stand for Google," Damore said. "It would be career suicide for any executives or directors to support me." 
 
 Google representatives didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. 
 
 The controversy comes as Silicon Valley companies grapple with how to increase workforce diversity in an industry dominated by white men and permeated with corporate cultures that seem biased against women and female engineers. Google, Facebook, Microsoft and other tech companies now regularly release diversity reports, highlighting low percentages of women and minority employees, with few moving up the management chain. 
 
 Damore was fired by Google on Monday -- the same day Google CEO Sundar Pichai told employees that the memo's author violated company rules by circulating the controversial memo. He said it's "not OK" for employees to feel that they can't "safely express their views (especially those with a minority viewpoint)." 
 
 Pichai said he believes Damore brought up valid concerns about Google's training and whether the diversity programs it has put in place are sufficiently open to all. But Pichai said the memo crossed a line. 
 
 Damore has said he believes his dismissal was illegal and that he would "likely be pursuing legal action." Before his firing, Damore said he submitted a complaint to the National Labor Relations Board charging Google's upper management with "misrepresenting and shaming me in order to silence my complaints." 
 
 Solving for XX: The industry seeks to overcome outdated ideas about "women in tech." 
 
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– Google CEO Sundar Pichai planned to address the controversy over an anti-diversity memo at an all-employee town hall meeting—but he called it off after workers said they were worried about online harassment. Pichai said questions from employees had been leaked and their identities had been published on alt-right websites, exposing them to online harassment, CNN reports. "Googlers are writing in, concerned about their safety and worried they may be 'outed' publicly for asking a question in the Town Hall," the CEO said in a letter to employees seen by Recode. He promised to "create a better set of conditions for us to have the discussion" at some point in the near future. The controversy exploded after memo author James Damore was fired for arguing that biological differences make women unsuited to some tech jobs. After canceling Thursday's meeting, Pichai spoke at an event for girls on the Google campus, addressing teams of young coders from around the world, the Verge reports. It's important that "more women and girls have the opportunity ... to learn how to code, create, and innovate," he said. "I want you to know that there's a place for you in this industry, there's a place for you at Google," he added. "Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. You belong here and we need you." (Damore says he was "punished" and "shamed" for trying to "improve" the company.)