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why does it matter if the moonshot factory is getting products out the door or not?

Because everyone always has to be shipping and disrupting! Big Business! Product! Sales!

Who's to blame?!

Attention, Decision, Interest, Action. AIDA.

We're adding a little something to this month's sales contest. As you all know, first prize is a Cadillac Eldorado. Anybody want to see second prize? (second prize is a set of steak knives.)

Third prize is you're fired.

These are The New Leads. These are the Glengarry leads. And to you they're gold. And you don't get them. Why? Because to give them to you would be throwing them away. They're for closers.

I realize that this comment is tongue-in-cheek, but the reality is that Alphabet is a corporation, not a research university. Corporations by definition need to ship and make money.

It doesn't, but if Google keeps feeding moonshot stories to the press, they should expect the press to circle back and see if there is any follow-through.

If Google X is really just a nerd-PR exercise, let's call it that.

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