4 ms·

Have you ever been working on something then had some huge company just go ahead and release exactly what you're building? Yeah, um, that totally didn't just ha

Have you ever been working on something then had some huge company just go ahead and release exactly what you're building? Yeah, um, that totally didn't just happen to me.

tomasien 14y ago
In all seriousness, it's pretty cool to see this small bit of validation for what I'm doing. It's not my project (freelance work that I chose bc I liked it), not on the same platform, and not EXACTLY the same, so this is really nothing but a good thing. Still, threw me back on my heels a bit.
VikingCoder 14y ago
Contact the team. Ask for a job. No, seriously.
- tomasien 14y ago
  A solid idea! I'm pretty dedicated to not having a job and I'm pretty good at it, but if it was anyone but me (or something like that) I'd do it for sure.
- fijal 14y ago
  i'm impressed with your belief in google. You can't just do it. It's a giant institution with rules and hiring process is formal and can't be done by the team.
  - VikingCoder 14y ago
    There are at least two ways to get hired at Google: * Apply blind * Work on something fascinating, and have someone on the inside want to hire you The second one is normally acquisitions, but it's how researchers often get hired away from universities as well. I'm not saying it's likely for someone to get hired the second way, but it is possible.
cyanbane 14y ago
Whats the harm in shipping both? I love that Google is doing this, and I hope all the best for people that benefit from it, but the term "Google" is not synonymous with _charity_ for me personally. Get your app out there with some official branding from respectable charities ("certified by the red cross etc") and I would DL yours just as quick as I would DL something similar from Google.
- tomasien 14y ago
  Read my subsequent comment. Maybe I should make it an edit because it's really important, but I don't ACTUALLY give a shit, and in fact am actually really happy to see Google seeing the same opportunity as me and my partners/clients. They actually ARE synonymous with charity and have a much, vastly grander vision. I actually hope very strongly to reach out to Google to partner on what they're doing once we go live.
  - dalore 14y ago
    One way to look at is is that they validated your idea.
    - tomasien 14y ago
      Agreed
angersock 14y ago
I'm sorry bro. :( My cofounder and I are in a precarious position ourselves, and if a bright VP decides to zig instead of zag, well, shit. Don't let it get to you!
culturestate 14y ago
My team for Startup Weekend Hong Kong did something similar as well [1], and we're still planning on bringing it to market. Our goal was to use charity to incentivize people to form habits - we started with exercise, but it could easily extend to things like quitting smoking or spending more time reading. When you sign up with our app, you choose two charities - one that you like and one that you don't - and if you stick to your commitments, we send your money on (minus our overhead fee) to the one you like. If you don't stick to your commitment, we send your money to the other one. I see this as a great bit of market validation. 1. http://www.slideshare.net/culturestate/promise-fit-slideshare http://www.slideshare.net/culturestate/promise-fit-slideshar...
joelrunyon 14y ago
I've got a friend working on the same thing :p
Samuel_Michon 14y ago
Release it anyway. There’s no telling how long this Google service will be around. Also, they haven’t really launched: it’s an invite-only Android app, only available in the US.

Have you ever been working on something then had some huge company just go ahead and release exactly what you're building? Yeah, um, that totally didn't just happen to me.

tomasien 14y ago

In all seriousness, it's pretty cool to see this small bit of validation for what I'm doing. It's not my project (freelance work that I chose bc I liked it), not on the same platform, and not EXACTLY the same, so this is really nothing but a good thing. Still, threw me back on my heels a bit.

VikingCoder 14y ago

Contact the team. Ask for a job. No, seriously.

tomasien 14y ago
A solid idea! I'm pretty dedicated to not having a job and I'm pretty good at it, but if it was anyone but me (or something like that) I'd do it for sure.
fijal 14y ago
i'm impressed with your belief in google. You can't just do it. It's a giant institution with rules and hiring process is formal and can't be done by the team.
- VikingCoder 14y ago
  There are at least two ways to get hired at Google: * Apply blind * Work on something fascinating, and have someone on the inside want to hire you The second one is normally acquisitions, but it's how researchers often get hired away from universities as well. I'm not saying it's likely for someone to get hired the second way, but it is possible.

cyanbane 14y ago

Whats the harm in shipping both? I love that Google is doing this, and I hope all the best for people that benefit from it, but the term "Google" is not synonymous with _charity_ for me personally. Get your app out there with some official branding from respectable charities ("certified by the red cross etc") and I would DL yours just as quick as I would DL something similar from Google.

tomasien 14y ago
Read my subsequent comment. Maybe I should make it an edit because it's really important, but I don't ACTUALLY give a shit, and in fact am actually really happy to see Google seeing the same opportunity as me and my partners/clients. They actually ARE synonymous with charity and have a much, vastly grander vision. I actually hope very strongly to reach out to Google to partner on what they're doing once we go live.
- dalore 14y ago
  One way to look at is is that they validated your idea.
  - tomasien 14y ago
    Agreed

angersock 14y ago

I'm sorry bro. :( My cofounder and I are in a precarious position ourselves, and if a bright VP decides to zig instead of zag, well, shit. Don't let it get to you!

culturestate 14y ago

My team for Startup Weekend Hong Kong did something similar as well [1], and we're still planning on bringing it to market. Our goal was to use charity to incentivize people to form habits - we started with exercise, but it could easily extend to things like quitting smoking or spending more time reading. When you sign up with our app, you choose two charities - one that you like and one that you don't - and if you stick to your commitments, we send your money on (minus our overhead fee) to the one you like. If you don't stick to your commitment, we send your money to the other one. I see this as a great bit of market validation. 1. http://www.slideshare.net/culturestate/promise-fit-slideshare http://www.slideshare.net/culturestate/promise-fit-slideshar...

joelrunyon 14y ago

I've got a friend working on the same thing :p

Samuel_Michon 14y ago

Release it anyway. There’s no telling how long this Google service will be around. Also, they haven’t really launched: it’s an invite-only Android app, only available in the US.