> it is exactly a researcher's purpose to do the risky things that may not work
Maybe at university, but not at a trillion dollar company. That job as chief scientist is leading risky things that will work to please the shareholders.
Maybe at university, but not at a trillion dollar company. That job as chief scientist is leading risky things that will work to please the shareholders.
Yes but he was hired in the ZIRP era where all SV companies were hiring every opinionated academic and giving them free reign and unlimited money to burn in the hopes that maybe they'll create the next big thing for them eventually.
These are very different economic times right now, after the FED infinite money glitch has been patched out, so now people do need to adjust to them and start actually making some products of value for their seven figure costs to their employers, or end up being shown the door.
Things known to work are not risky. Risky things can fail by definition.
Also, like… it’s Facebook. It has a history of ploughing billions into complete nonsense (see metaverse). It is clearly not particularly risk averse.