Good way to describe those 1-off/advanced initiatives. It really does seem like a hedged bet in some cases and a great way to keep people inside the company eng

Good way to describe those 1-off/advanced initiatives. It really does seem like a hedged bet in some cases and a great way to keep people inside the company engaged/curious/thinking outside the box. I thought Google was also doing significant funding (and research?) into high-efficiency solar panels. To me, all of these efforts smell (in a good way) of some VERY forward-thinking people. Autonomous cars directed by Google technologies (Google Maps, showing Google Ads to the driver while engaged on an Android-based, internet device) and powered by ultra-high-efficiency solar panels is a future you can think yourself towards if you are ambitious enough and sitting there fitting pieces together. Not saying they are going to get into all those industries, but it's not like these 1-off efforts are focused on optimizing vacuum cleaners to compete with Dyson or making the world's most resilient non-stick pan; there is some tangential connection to a greater future image in all of it, even if it's a vision 20-years-off. It makes me really happy to know that there are people in this world, sitting around just trying to poke and prod the limits of what we know and drive us forward, even if the future ends up taking a slightly different shape.