[bane]

Well, let's not blow this out of proportion. Google is basically a big advertising agency. The principle problem they're working on is click through rates.

If that's what floats the boats of the best and brightest, I feel kind of sorry for the direction of the species.

Sure they have lots of cool feeder technologies to support this singular goal, but getting people to click paid links is not exactly the same as colonizing Mars.

[minwcnt5]

Ah, the old "Google is just an advertising company" cliche. This is just a small step from the Reddit hipster memes that say things like "oh, self driving cars are not that interesting, they're just a way to get your attention off the road and onto their ads".

The vast majority of engineers at Google have never worked on click through rates in their lives. Downplay it as a "feeder technology" all you want, but I'm pretty sure Google search, for instance, has had a huge impact on humanity. One that some people might consider just as important as sending a robot to Mars.

[bane]

People have a habit of assigning altruism to things to they like that they don't pay for -- and without connecting those things to the costs.

SV and the greater Startup ecosystem has taken this to heart and turned it around, trying to "change the world" with photo sharing apps or weather reporting toasters or whatever. The fact of the matter is, this messaging is a hack to get people to feel good about using the service or buying the device. It's psychological slight of hand because people don't like it when a nameless gray haired white man in a suit says he's looking to maximize revenue growth the next 3 quarters.

Why is Google in search? To deliver ads. They can deliver better ads by having better search, no? They can deliver better ads by providing locational service. They can deliver better ads by getting your face stick to a mobile screen playing matching games that serve up ads. They can deliver better ads by...<insert method>.

Let's say google develops and licenses technology for self driving cars to all the automakers in the world. What do you think people are going to be doing in those vehicles? Surfing the internet and probably looking at ads.

Do you think Sergey Brin, when he's travelling to his private vacation island, bought with ad revenue, in his private jet, paid for with ad revenue, going over the quarterly report, about ad revenue, is thinking to himself, "I'm really satisfied with how many people found trivial information about pop stars with our technology" or is he thinking, "how can I get even more people to click the top-most served ads?"

It's great that I can get global turn by turn directions on my phone, it's improved my life, but google hasn't provided that to me because they think I'm a nice person and want to make my life better. I could have just kept buying Garmins after all. They want me to search for "restaurant" and have a top paid advertisement for "Bob's Pancake House" show up in the list and have me click that so Bob transfers a little money to Google's bank account.

Helping humanity is simply a fortunate side effect of Google's work. But it's not the focus.

[pwnguin]

> Do you think Sergey Brin ... is thinking to himself, "I'm really satisfied with how many people found trivial information about pop stars with our technology" or is he thinking, "how can I get even more people to click the top-most served ads?"

He's probably scared shitless that he has exactly one revenue stream worth talking about, and has no idea how to supplement it.

[S4M]

> I'm pretty sure Google search, for instance, has had a huge impact on humanity.

Actually, I am not so sure about this. Sure, it's convenient and saves time, but I wouldn't call it "a huge impact on humanity". It has been more than ten years since it has been around, and I haven't noticed a massive change. I would say, it appears to me that people are more connected, and slightly more aware of the news, which is due to a conjunction of the massive penetration of Internet, the social networks, and the improvement of the search. Google has an important part for sure, but again, for me it's not "a huge impact on humanity", like would be, say, the colonization of Mars or the end of the poverty (where Google search may or may not play a role).

[gaius]

Its "impact on humanity" may not be positive http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2008/07/is-googl...

[S4M]

Ho, I remember having read this article, in 2008 or 2009, and agreed. I think it's part of a debate whether instantaneity is good or bad. Thanks for giving that link back.