Alphabet Inc. (formerly: Google)

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#81
(29-05-2014, 09:23 AM)CityFarmer Wrote: In a couple of years later, owning a car with a chauffeur isn't only for HNWIs. What a dream... Kudos to Google for dare to dream...Big Grin

Google building self-driving cars with no driver seat, steering wheels

RANCHO PALOS VERDES (California) – Google is building cars that do not have steering wheels, accelerator pedals or brake pedals, in an ambitious expansion of the Internet company’s efforts to develop self-driving cars.

The small electric cars, which seat two passengers, are currently prototypes that Google has been building through partnerships with automotive suppliers and manufacturers, Google co-founder Sergey Brin said at the Code conference in Southern California yesterday (May 27).

Google aims to build up to 200 such cars in the near term and hopes the vehicles will be available in various cities within a couple of years, he said.
...
http://www.todayonline.com/tech/google-b...ing-wheels

In real life we always plan for contingencies, especially in engineering. In this case I am wondering where is the manual override.

I would be very worried if there is none.
Before you speak, listen. Before you write, think. Before you spend, earn. Before you invest, investigate. Before you criticize, wait. Before you pray, forgive. Before you quit, try. Before you retire, save. Before you die, give. –William A. Ward

Think Asset-Business-Structure (ABS)
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#82
(27-06-2014, 06:22 PM)specuvestor Wrote:
(29-05-2014, 09:23 AM)CityFarmer Wrote: In a couple of years later, owning a car with a chauffeur isn't only for HNWIs. What a dream... Kudos to Google for dare to dream...Big Grin

Google building self-driving cars with no driver seat, steering wheels

RANCHO PALOS VERDES (California) – Google is building cars that do not have steering wheels, accelerator pedals or brake pedals, in an ambitious expansion of the Internet company’s efforts to develop self-driving cars.

The small electric cars, which seat two passengers, are currently prototypes that Google has been building through partnerships with automotive suppliers and manufacturers, Google co-founder Sergey Brin said at the Code conference in Southern California yesterday (May 27).

Google aims to build up to 200 such cars in the near term and hopes the vehicles will be available in various cities within a couple of years, he said.
...
http://www.todayonline.com/tech/google-b...ing-wheels

In real life we always plan for contingencies, especially in engineering. In this case I am wondering where is the manual override.

I would be very worried if there is none.

It should has the safety feature, otherwise it will not reach mass production level. Big Grin
“夏则资皮,冬则资纱,旱则资船,水则资车” - 范蠡
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#83
An interesting case study of regulation vs. execution...

Google scrubs Europe search results, draws flak

BRUSSELS — Google’s removal of search results in Europe is drawing accusations of press censorship, as stories from some of the continent’s most prominent news outlets begin vanishing. The US internet giant said yesterday (July 3) it is getting 1,000 requests a day to scrub results.

The US firm must comply with a May ruling from the European Union’s top court that enables citizens to ask for the removal of embarrassing personal information that pops up on a search of their names. Among links to vanish were stories on a soccer referee who resigned after a scandal in 2010, French office workers making post-it art, a couple having sex on a train and a lawyer facing a fraud trial.

At least three British media outlets, including the Guardian newspaper and public broadcaster BBC, said Google notified them search results in Europe would not contain some links to their publications.
...
http://www.todayonline.com/tech/google-s...draws-flak
“夏则资皮,冬则资纱,旱则资船,水则资车” - 范蠡
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#84
Delay in the launch of Samsung's next smartphone, Samsung Z, which uses Samsung's very own 'Tizen' Operating System - break away from Google's Android ..

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/tech...86044.html
Winston Churchill:-
“The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries.”
"The farther backward you can look, the farther forward you are likely to see."
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#85
Google and Amazon are going in the same direction. What a interesting idea, but it is very unlikely to deploy in Singapore...

(not vested)

Google tests using drones to deliver goods
29 Aug 2014 07:41
[SAN FRANCISCO] Google on Thursday said it is testing using drones to deliver items bought online, putting its own spin on similar efforts by Internet retail titan Amazon.com.

Two years of research into what Google referred to as "Project Wing" was capped this month with test flights delivering candy, water, medicine, dog treats and other items to two farmers in Queensland, Australia.

"Self-flying vehicles could open up entirely new approaches to moving goods," California-based Google said in a blog post disclosing the project.

"Throughout history, major changes in how we move goods from place to place have led to new opportunities for economic growth and generally made consumers' lives easier." Project Wing drones were described as having more in common with Google's self-driving car than remote-controlled aircraft used by hobbyists.

Delivery drones and autonomous vehicles are both being worked on in Google X lab devoted to innovative new technologies.

Google expected it to be several years before a delivery drone system is ready.
...
Source: Business Times Breaking News
“夏则资皮,冬则资纱,旱则资船,水则资车” - 范蠡
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#86
(27-06-2014, 09:13 PM)CityFarmer Wrote:
(27-06-2014, 06:22 PM)specuvestor Wrote:
(29-05-2014, 09:23 AM)CityFarmer Wrote: In a couple of years later, owning a car with a chauffeur isn't only for HNWIs. What a dream... Kudos to Google for dare to dream...Big Grin

Google building self-driving cars with no driver seat, steering wheels

RANCHO PALOS VERDES (California) – Google is building cars that do not have steering wheels, accelerator pedals or brake pedals, in an ambitious expansion of the Internet company’s efforts to develop self-driving cars.

The small electric cars, which seat two passengers, are currently prototypes that Google has been building through partnerships with automotive suppliers and manufacturers, Google co-founder Sergey Brin said at the Code conference in Southern California yesterday (May 27).

Google aims to build up to 200 such cars in the near term and hopes the vehicles will be available in various cities within a couple of years, he said.
...
http://www.todayonline.com/tech/google-b...ing-wheels

In real life we always plan for contingencies, especially in engineering. In this case I am wondering where is the manual override.

I would be very worried if there is none.

It should has the safety feature, otherwise it will not reach mass production level. Big Grin

What we discussed:

Driverless Cars Hijacked by Hackers Signal Risk in Google Push
2014-09-04 08:40:28.995 GMT


By Alexa Liautaud
Sept. 4 (Bloomberg) -- A red VW Golf jerks back and forth
as it maneuvers into a parking space in the English spa town of
Cheltenham. The halting efforts resemble those of a new driver,
and in a sense they are -- just not from the person sitting at
the wheel.
The car itself is navigating into the spot, which it
manages without a scratch. The man in the driver’s seat, who has
his hands resting leisurely on his lap except for the occasional
gear change, is a mere onlooker in this demonstration of the
latest automated-car technology.
While the idea of robo-cars whisking us off to our
destinations may sound like science fiction, the technology
exists and is largely ready for the real world. What’s harder to
determine is the risk associated with the emergence of these
vehicles.
If automakers effectively take the wheel, that puts them in
the firing line for liability suits stemming from accidents. The
vehicles would also be exposed to threats from hackers who could
hijack cars and potentially control them remotely, turning them
into mules for criminal purposes or even using them as weapons.

“A hacker could redirect a whole bunch of traffic to
gridlock a city” or even “kidnap people,” said Wil Rockall,
director of information protection at consulting company KPMG in
Tonbridge, England. “The risk goes from being one of human
error on the part of the driver or road user to being human
error on the part of a developer.”

Autonomous S-Class

Still, such worst-case scenarios aren’t halting efforts to
push the technology, which is forecast to become an $87 billion
market by 2030, according to Boston-based Lux Research. The
Golf’s self-directed parking job in the August presentation by
Volkswagen AG is just one example of the trend.
Google Inc. unveiled a cartoonish prototype of a self-
driving car in May. A Mercedes-Benz S-Class drove itself 100
kilometers (62 miles) through real daytime traffic on crowded
German roads last year, and parent Daimler AG is developing
self-driving trucks.
The prospect of cars being controlled by online navigation
systems is troubling to regulators and law enforcers. The U.S.
Federal Bureau of Investigation has determined that hackers
could take over automated vehicles and use them as “lethal
weapons,” the Guardian reported in July, citing a study
obtained by the British newspaper.
Yet there are benefits as well. The FBI report acknowledged
that police could monitor connected cars more easily. In any
case, automakers are attuned to the risks.

‘Stumbling Block’

“The biggest stumbling block to any of these things is car
security and also liability,” said Gavin Ward, a spokesman for
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG. “Those are the sort of issues that
are still being worked out.” The Munich-based carmaker has
tested self-driving technology on the German autobahn.
Volkswagen, based in Wolfsburg, Germany, is also keeping
its eye on the tactics of cyber criminals to keep a step ahead,
spokesman Paul Buckett said at the demonstration in Cheltenham.
Google declined to make someone available to discuss risks
associated with their automotive efforts.
To limit hacker risk, autonomous cars will need “much more
security” and that requires constant monitoring, said Andrew
Miller, chief technical officer at Thatcham Research, which
supplies data to British vehicle insurers. “As fast as people
come up with software and encryption processes, the criminals
come up with ways around them.”
Aside from worst-case risks like remote carjacking, there’s
the mundane question of who’s to blame in an accident when human
error is no longer an issue. That could ease the burden on the
driver, as the responsibility shifts to carmakers.

No Fatigue

Because robotic vehicles don’t suffer from daydreaming and
fatigue, “you are going to have a lower frequency of incidents
because these cars are an awful lot safer,” said Murray
Raisbeck, a partner at KPMG’s insurance practice. “However, if
something does go wrong, the severity could be an awful lot
greater.”
The change in liability could shift the burden of insuring
against accidents to carmakers, suppliers and developers, while
consumers would pay less. That might hit the motor-coverage
business, which is worth $200 billion a year in the U.S.,
according to the National Association of Insurance
Commissioners.
“It is difficult to be precise on what impact driverless
cars will have for us, but we know there are going to be
issues,” said Alan Gairns, product manager for home and motor
insurance at Allianz SE in the U.K.
Before you speak, listen. Before you write, think. Before you spend, earn. Before you invest, investigate. Before you criticize, wait. Before you pray, forgive. Before you quit, try. Before you retire, save. Before you die, give. –William A. Ward

Think Asset-Business-Structure (ABS)
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#87
Gone Google. Looks like the selling will be on Nesdaq very soon. Big disappointment sell down. Another Tech that top out in splitting the shares. Tech selling expected. Those on the long and have already got big profit will most likely lock in profit and drop the stock.

Those who bought Google this year got no gain. The CO. is pot shooting its free cashflow on what might work. Hopping for a youtube hit. So far its not happening, and in the meanwhile Facebook is fast moving chipping away revenue of Google in advert.
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#88
Google always "dare to dream" and put them into action. A wireless broadband that comparable with fiber throughput, needs a breakthrough. I wonder how far can it go?

Google seeks to test high-speed wireless service

SAN FRANCISCO — Google is preparing to test a new technology that may provide the foundation for a wireless version of its high-speed Fiber Internet service, said telecommunication experts who scrutinised the company’s regulatory filings.

In a public but little-noticed application with the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on Monday, Google asked the agency for permission to conduct tests in California across different wireless spectrums, including a rarely-used millimetre-wave frequency capable of transmitting large amounts of data.

It is unclear from the heavily redacted filing what exactly Google intends to do, but it does signal the Internet giant’s broader ambition of controlling Internet connectivity.

The technology it seeks to test could form the basis of a wireless connection that can be broadcast to homes, obviating the need for an actual ground cable or fibre connection, experts say.

By beaming Internet services directly into homes, Google would open a new path now thoroughly dominated by Verizon, AT&T, Comcast and other entrenched cable and broadband providers. It could potentially offer a quicker and cheaper way to deliver high-speed Internet service, a potential threat to the cable-telecoms oligopoly, experts said.
...
http://www.todayonline.com/tech/google-s...ss-service
“夏则资皮,冬则资纱,旱则资船,水则资车” - 范蠡
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#89
Google’s expected $100bn cash pile prompts call for dividends
ALISTAIR BARR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL NOVEMBER 03, 2014 10:04AM

BY the end of 2016, Google will have more than $US100 billion in cash and cash-like securities, much of it earning less than 1 per cent a year, according to top-ranked Wall Street analyst Carlos Kirjner.

That’s a problem for shareholders, the Bernstein Research analyst wrote in a note to investors Friday, because they could earn higher returns elsewhere.

He would like the company to return some of the cash.

Google has argued that it needs lots of cash to stay nimble and compete with other fast-moving technology companies.

But that position will become increasingly untenable as the company’s cash mountain climbs, Kirjner wrote. Likely, it will become “embarrassing” by the end of 2016.

If the company’s management and board of directors keep making it, no one will believe them.

Google should return some of its cash to shareholders, ideally through a dividend or by repurchasing some of its shares, Kirjner advised.

That would erase doubts among some investors about the commitment of co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin to creating value for long-term shareholders.

Apple faced similar questions about its giant cash position, and it has been pressured by activist investors including David Einhorn and Carl Icahn.

The hardware company responded in 2012 with a plan to return some of its war chest to shareholders.

It announced earlier this year more than $US130 billion in dividends and stock buybacks. Google is less exposed to investor pressure because special classes of shares give the co-founders more voting control than other shareholders over important company decisions.

Still, Google regularly discusses with its board of directors how best to manage its cash, a company spokesman said Friday.

“As we’ve said many times, we consider our cash to be a key strategic asset.

It allows us to be nimble and move quickly in a very young, competitive and constantly changing industry,” the spokesman added.

Google CFO Patrick Pichette in late January told analysts on a conference call that Google’s board and audit committee reviewed the issue.

Executives concluded that the cash position was strategically valuable.

The company tries to get the best returns on its cash, he said. Kirjner said Google should talk with its major shareholders to decide the best way to return some of its cash within about 24 months.

The Google spokesman declined to comment on whether the company had raised the issue with investors.
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#90
Do the cinemas ban camera phones as well?

US movie industry bans Google Glass, other wearable devices at all cinemas

HOLLYWOOD (Florida) — Google Glass and other wearable devices are now officially off-limits in the cinema.

Yesterday (Oct 29), the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO) announced an update to their joint policy to prevent film theft in theatres, prohibiting recording by users equipped with Google Glass or other wearables in theatres.

The update “was made to fully integrate wearable tech into the rules following a joint meeting of NATO and MPAA theatrical anti-piracy teams,” the lobbying organisation said. The announcement was made at ShowEast 2014, NATO’s annual industry confab in Hollywood, Florida.

The issue, while it hasn’t cropped up much, has prompted Hollywood to act. This January, a man who was wearing a Google Glass headset during a showing of Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit at an AMC Theatres location in Columbus, Ohio, was questioned by agents from the Department of Homeland Security about whether he was illegally recording the film.
...
http://www.todayonline.com/tech/us-movie...ll-cinemas
“夏则资皮,冬则资纱,旱则资船,水则资车” - 范蠡
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