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Lately, as I hear of extremely-cool startups being acquired by Google, I feel rather sad. I would much rather see them succeed on their own, than disappear into

by jwr 12y ago

Lately, as I hear of extremely-cool startups being acquired by Google, I feel rather sad. I would much rather see them succeed on their own, than disappear into the belly of Google. And I really can't see how Google, which is an advertising company, can bring value to this acquisition.

mousa 12y ago
You can't see how a company with a bottomless pocket and the most computing resources can help them achieve their goals?
- laxatives 12y ago
  You don't think Waze has gotten significantly worse since they were acquired by Google?
  - magicalist 12y ago
    The problem with taking vague rhetorical stances like that instead of actually stating how you think it's gotten "significantly worse" is I have no idea what aspect you're talking about, so it's difficult to empathize and try to imagine the downside you're seeing. I'll go out on a limb and say no, not at all, especially with the qualifier "significantly" on there, which I would take to mean that even the casual Waze fan (like me) should have noticed what's going wrong there. I don't particularly care about some of the new features like sharing location with friends, but I just don't use them (and they seem plausibly like things they would have added anyway, with or without acquisition).
- jwr 12y ago
  No. Sure, they can do research on cool stuff. But do you see Google selling and distributing these utensils anytime soon? In other words, will this acquisition put more useful devices in the hands of those who badly need them? I don't think so.
  - robg 12y ago
    They are already selling. This acquisition won't affect that. It will help them get more publicity with more resources and more expertise. The numbers will be going up, not down.
    - yanma 12y ago
      That seems to be the state currently, but you just never know. BufferBox, a YC alum, was bought out and subsequently dissolved within a couple of years despite their momentum before being acquired. That being said, Google X operates very differently from rest of of Googleverse.
baldfat 12y ago
Actually Google has a HUGE interest in healthcare and longevity. This totally makes sense for them.
- lnanek2 12y ago
  Yes, but have they ever managed to do anything good in the space? Google Health crashed and burned remember. Lift Labs could have found a better company to work with just by going to single Standford medicine and tech event, of which there are dozens...
  - robg 12y ago
    You make it sound so easy. In medical hardware it's anything but.
robg 12y ago
100% chance of success vs. something much lower than that. Building hardware is hard enough. Jumping through the medical regulations is something else.

by jwr 12y ago

mousa 12y ago

You can't see how a company with a bottomless pocket and the most computing resources can help them achieve their goals?

laxatives 12y ago
You don't think Waze has gotten significantly worse since they were acquired by Google?
- magicalist 12y ago
  The problem with taking vague rhetorical stances like that instead of actually stating how you think it's gotten "significantly worse" is I have no idea what aspect you're talking about, so it's difficult to empathize and try to imagine the downside you're seeing. I'll go out on a limb and say no, not at all, especially with the qualifier "significantly" on there, which I would take to mean that even the casual Waze fan (like me) should have noticed what's going wrong there. I don't particularly care about some of the new features like sharing location with friends, but I just don't use them (and they seem plausibly like things they would have added anyway, with or without acquisition).
jwr 12y ago
No. Sure, they can do research on cool stuff. But do you see Google selling and distributing these utensils anytime soon? In other words, will this acquisition put more useful devices in the hands of those who badly need them? I don't think so.
- robg 12y ago
  They are already selling. This acquisition won't affect that. It will help them get more publicity with more resources and more expertise. The numbers will be going up, not down.
  - yanma 12y ago
    That seems to be the state currently, but you just never know. BufferBox, a YC alum, was bought out and subsequently dissolved within a couple of years despite their momentum before being acquired. That being said, Google X operates very differently from rest of of Googleverse.

baldfat 12y ago

Actually Google has a HUGE interest in healthcare and longevity. This totally makes sense for them.

lnanek2 12y ago
Yes, but have they ever managed to do anything good in the space? Google Health crashed and burned remember. Lift Labs could have found a better company to work with just by going to single Standford medicine and tech event, of which there are dozens...
- robg 12y ago
  You make it sound so easy. In medical hardware it's anything but.

robg 12y ago

100% chance of success vs. something much lower than that. Building hardware is hard enough. Jumping through the medical regulations is something else.