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Translation: Too many Googlers leave and go on to start their own companies. We're creating a playground where they can explore their ideas and we can keep the

by slackingoff2017 9y ago

Translation: Too many Googlers leave and go on to start their own companies. We're creating a playground where they can explore their ideas and we can keep the profits, as it should be.

mmastrac 9y ago
Google pays well. Why not take the opportunity to swing for the fences without taking personal financial risk?
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- mythz 9y ago
  Because you'll forfeit your reward or upside for working hard on executing your idea, worse if it's successful where Google owns your IP and starts productizing it you've killed your opportunity to go start your own company around it.
  - tempestn 9y ago
    But if you're not interested in starting a company, and instead want to work on interesting things while being paid very well, it sounds pretty good.
    - mythz 9y ago
      Your pay remains the same regardless. If you're not interested in any financial gain, sure it can be more enjoyable to spend your work hours on your own idea inside Google's cushy offices.
      - themacguffinman 9y ago
        That's a strange assumption. I would think that any employee who pioneers a successful idea will land a leading role in the subsequent product development team and a bonus at least. Sure, the reward isn't as high as if you spun off your own startup but it won't be nothing.
- avaer 9y ago
  Because as your patron Google ultimately calls the shots. You are still an employee beholden to your monolith employer.
- slackingoff2017 9y ago
  Building your dreams within area 120 implies that they belong to Google. Personally, I would rather own the idea I'm passionate about than get paid to work on it. Plus, former Google employees are some of the most hireable candidates in the world. They don't lose job security when they walk away to chase their startup dreams like most of us do.
- jboggan 9y ago
  Do you want to build Pied Piper or Nucleus?
  - e2e4 9y ago
    :)
oconnor663 9y ago
> keep the profits Yes the lucrative profits of the average startup :-D
- slackingoff2017 9y ago
  Googlers can easily go to any tech company within weeks of their startup failure. For them there's little risk.
  - jlebar 9y ago
    Other than the risk of taking home 1/4 their salary and working twice as long for years and finally leaving with nothing to show for it. Which is by far the most likely outcome.
daxfohl 9y ago
Do they? What successful companies have been founded by ex-googlers? I don't think a ton, in income terms. I see this as far more marketing fluff and/or job ads than preemptive recuperation of insignificant future losses. (Though I do hope cockroachdb makes it big).
- laser 9y ago
  Pinterest [1] and Instagram [2] may be the two largest. And I guess technically Twitter [3]. But Google is so massive that I'm not sure it really would impact their overall market cap at this point. For example, Twitter is about 2% of Google's $640 billion market cap. Although, Instagram is worth around $50 billion now, which might be primarily because of Facebook, but in the most generous case could've added around 8% to Google's overall value, which is moderately significant. Anyway, I applaud their effort, as I think it has a significant chance of empowering some people to build some awesome stuff that they were otherwise too hesitant to go at alone. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Silbermann https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Silbermann [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Systrom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Systrom [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evan_Williams_(Internet_entrepreneur) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evan_Williams_(Internet_entrep...
- cwp 9y ago
  It doesn't matter if they're successful or not. The point is that bright, hard-working people left Google, and chances are, they won't be back even if the startup doesn't pan out. If they try out their idea in Area 120 instead, then a) Google can own the product if it ends up being good b) It has a better chance at success with Google behind it c) If it fails, the "founders" are more likely to rejoin the mothership
- nandemo 9y ago
  https://www.quora.com/What-successful-startups-have-been-founded-by-ex-Googlers https://www.quora.com/What-successful-startups-have-been-fou... There are many more, though.

Translation: Too many Googlers leave and go on to start their own companies. We're creating a playground where they can explore their ideas and we can keep the profits, as it should be.

mmastrac 9y ago

Google pays well. Why not take the opportunity to swing for the fences without taking personal financial risk?

deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
mythz 9y ago
Because you'll forfeit your reward or upside for working hard on executing your idea, worse if it's successful where Google owns your IP and starts productizing it you've killed your opportunity to go start your own company around it.
- tempestn 9y ago
  But if you're not interested in starting a company, and instead want to work on interesting things while being paid very well, it sounds pretty good.
  - mythz 9y ago
    Your pay remains the same regardless. If you're not interested in any financial gain, sure it can be more enjoyable to spend your work hours on your own idea inside Google's cushy offices.
    - themacguffinman 9y ago
      That's a strange assumption. I would think that any employee who pioneers a successful idea will land a leading role in the subsequent product development team and a bonus at least. Sure, the reward isn't as high as if you spun off your own startup but it won't be nothing.
avaer 9y ago
Because as your patron Google ultimately calls the shots. You are still an employee beholden to your monolith employer.
slackingoff2017 9y ago
Building your dreams within area 120 implies that they belong to Google. Personally, I would rather own the idea I'm passionate about than get paid to work on it. Plus, former Google employees are some of the most hireable candidates in the world. They don't lose job security when they walk away to chase their startup dreams like most of us do.
jboggan 9y ago
Do you want to build Pied Piper or Nucleus?
- e2e4 9y ago
  :)

oconnor663 9y ago

> keep the profits Yes the lucrative profits of the average startup :-D

slackingoff2017 9y ago
Googlers can easily go to any tech company within weeks of their startup failure. For them there's little risk.
- jlebar 9y ago
  Other than the risk of taking home 1/4 their salary and working twice as long for years and finally leaving with nothing to show for it. Which is by far the most likely outcome.

daxfohl 9y ago

Do they? What successful companies have been founded by ex-googlers? I don't think a ton, in income terms. I see this as far more marketing fluff and/or job ads than preemptive recuperation of insignificant future losses. (Though I do hope cockroachdb makes it big).

laser 9y ago
Pinterest [1] and Instagram [2] may be the two largest. And I guess technically Twitter [3]. But Google is so massive that I'm not sure it really would impact their overall market cap at this point. For example, Twitter is about 2% of Google's $640 billion market cap. Although, Instagram is worth around $50 billion now, which might be primarily because of Facebook, but in the most generous case could've added around 8% to Google's overall value, which is moderately significant. Anyway, I applaud their effort, as I think it has a significant chance of empowering some people to build some awesome stuff that they were otherwise too hesitant to go at alone. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Silbermann https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Silbermann [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Systrom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Systrom [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evan_Williams_(Internet_entrepreneur) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evan_Williams_(Internet_entrep...
cwp 9y ago
It doesn't matter if they're successful or not. The point is that bright, hard-working people left Google, and chances are, they won't be back even if the startup doesn't pan out. If they try out their idea in Area 120 instead, then a) Google can own the product if it ends up being good b) It has a better chance at success with Google behind it c) If it fails, the "founders" are more likely to rejoin the mothership
nandemo 9y ago
https://www.quora.com/What-successful-startups-have-been-founded-by-ex-Googlers https://www.quora.com/What-successful-startups-have-been-fou... There are many more, though.