Google is so perplexing. I hoped their green-field research divisions would become drivers of innovation in the mold of Xerox PARC, Bell Labs, etc. They had the

Google is so perplexing. I hoped their green-field research divisions would become drivers of innovation in the mold of Xerox PARC, Bell Labs, etc. They had the resources and prestige to acquire the world's top talent. All we've got are the world's dorkiest glasses. Where did things go wrong? Thiel argues that monopoly is a necessary condition of innovation, and Google can qualify as a monopoly under any reasonable measure. But it's starting to feel like PARC and Bell Labs were an accident of history; both were perfectly positioned at the cusp of the digital computer revolution. If we're approaching a similar technical revolution, it's not clear at all. Machine learning, chat bots, drones, ride-hailing apps, etc., are great, but we're in the midst of evolutionary -- not revolutionary -- progress. That's fine. It's the normal state of affairs, progress marching slowly on. Whether Google wants to do long-term green-field research or it wants to incubate new businesses, it's not clear. From the outside, it looks like a bit of an identity crisis.