Not to doubt the honesty of Google here, but independently from the altruistic considerations, this is very smart market research outsourcing.<p>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.<p>Not a criticism at all. It only brings hope when benevolence and business go by the hand.
<i>Q: What do I get if my idea is chosen?<p>A: You get good karma and the satisfaction of knowing that your idea might truly help a lot of people.</i><p>I don't think I'm alone to say that I'll just develop my own ideas but thanks for the offer.
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. <a href="http://tier.cs.berkeley.edu/wiki/Home" rel="nofollow">http://tier.cs.berkeley.edu/wiki/Home</a><p>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.
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?<p>William