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The dismantling of Google.org in 2015. We were once an engineering and product team that used Google's unique reach, resources, infrastructure, and technology
by zestyping 7y ago
The dismantling of Google.org in 2015.
We were once an engineering and product team that used Google's unique reach, resources, infrastructure, and technology to create tools and services purely for good. We reunited survivors of disasters, helped them find shelter, alerted people to keep them safe, built technology to help MSF fight Ebola, and predicted flu epidemics. We worked to lift the most vulnerable among us. Teams all over the company and around the world helped us do things only Google could.
That Google.org no longer exists. The "Google.org" label has been reassigned to Google's donation programs. Google donates money to many meaningful efforts, and that's great; but anyone can donate money. Google used to donate money and build things for good, and it does the latter no more.
- fooker 7y agoYes. Another one I just recalled: More and more retaliation. Two prominent women who tried to protest were 'managed out' this year.
- xiphias2 7y agoI (an Eastern European software engineer who was working at Google Switzerland) can't forget the Christmas gift I got from Google that I donated Chromebooks to students in U.S. It was the weirdest Christmas present that I got in my life, and believe me I got some very weird clothes from my mum when I was young.
- thu2111 7y agoThat was the same Google.org that had weird problems with its leader interfering in middle eastern politics, to the extent it became practically an extension of the White House? I remember google.org - seen from the perspective of an engineer in a far away land it was frankly just kind of weird/creepy/slightly sinister. Yeah the flu epidemic predictor thing was kinda cool, except I never heard anything about it since and I'm not sure it's ever actually been useful for much.