

10^100: Google calls for ideas to change the world by helping as many people as possible. - mad44
http://www.project10tothe100.com/how_it_works.html

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euccastro
Not to doubt the honesty of Google here, but independently from the altruistic
considerations, this is very smart market research outsourcing.

Lots of people from different backgrounds will be eagerly giving the company
ideas about things that (1) people want and (2) are massively scalable. Most
will not be directly monetizable, but one or two gems could make this
experiment pay off in very pragmatic, egotistical terms.

Not a criticism at all. It only brings hope when benevolence and business go
by the hand.

~~~
mad44
You make a great point.

The profit margin on the product may be very low, yet the developing world
(which this effort seems to be targeting primarily) is a huge market, and the
investment will pay off greatly. Plus, the product will be for a good cause.
Win-win situation.

Secondly, Google is harvesting the wisdom of the crowds with this call. No
doubt there will be several great gems from the fringes. I am looking forward
to see the top 100 list. I am also confused a little. Google states that the
Google employees will go over all the submissions and choose the top 100 list.
Wouldn't that be incredibly tedious? I wonder what tools they will use to
speed things up. I think this would make a great job to submit to the
Mechanical Turk.

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sosuke
_Q: What do I get if my idea is chosen?

A: You get good karma and the satisfaction of knowing that your idea might
truly help a lot of people._

I don't think I'm alone to say that I'll just develop my own ideas but thanks
for the offer.

~~~
mad44
Google is committing $10 million to implement these projects, so by just
donating your idea you can truly help a lot of people. A big return for a
small work. To me this is a great deal. I will be brainstorming with my
friends in the next couple of weeks, and will try to make 5 high quality
submissions.

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mad44
In a related effort, from the networking/systems perspective, Eric Brewer of
Inktomi fame has been working on investigating the design and deployment of
new technologies for emerging regions. <http://tier.cs.berkeley.edu/wiki/Home>

Below is wikipedia entry for Eric: Eric A. Brewer is a former billionaire and
main inventor of a wireless networking scheme called WiLDNet which promises to
bring low-cost connectivity to rural areas of the developing world. He also
was made a tenured professor at UC Berkeley at the age of only 32. In 1996,
Brewer co-founded Inktomi Corporation.

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williambesson
It seems that helping people is more and more in the air. I have been working
on such idea before google sent this appeal. I am wondering how they will
handle the finalist. Do they give you 10 millions and let's say 50% of the
shares or do you become somehow a google employee trading your best idea for a
jumpstart in the startup area without guarantees of what you will own?

William

