Sometimes you don't know up front. Perhaps you learn a lot about gaussian splatting and push forward that tech by five years (presuming they started on this five years ago).
replyOr maybe you learn this helps you build a world model that would have accelerated Waymo's progression, or you sell it to robotics companies.
That's the nice thing about having a money printer and a ton of smart, curious, and driven people. You can afford to do things without a strict eye towards profit, that's reserved for tiny companies living on a razor's edge. Or consultants I guess.
Google mission statement is “to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.”
replyWhich Street View as it is, currently does. And is a phenomenal human achivement.
replyAdding a bonus 3D renderer on top is just a nice-to-have.
Mission statements are only there to resonate with people, so that part is working. If the mission doesn't make money, they aren't gonna do it just because it matches a statement
replyBy selling virtual billboards within the street view
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