Google cancels half of Area 120 projects due to cost cutting
September 16, 2022 By Saloni Behl
(Image Credit Google)
Sundar Pichai, the
Google CEO, is on a mission to cut costs. He stated that productivity at Google was not as high in July. In response, Google cut the Google Hardware laptop division. In addition, project Loon was spun off to continue to exist independently. Bloomberg reports that the latest move is directed at Google Area 120, an "idea incubator" group. Moreover, the second highest court in Europe on Wednesday
Confirmed the ruling on Google but reduced the fine from €4.34 billion to €4.125 billion
In 2016, Area 120 was launched. The group's motto is "Area 120 works on 20% of all projects 100% of the time," according to its website. Google offers employees 20% of their time to work on exciting projects. Area 120 will create a group project if they have a great idea.
Ars has mentioned the group several times, primarily because of the "Google Reply" experiment, which allowed AI to quickly reply to instant messaging services. The reply was an openly described "experiment" that was a hack job. However, today the feature is a standard part of Android, and it's a huge success. Google has begun working on a
Google Workspace app based on "Tables," a project management app. GameSnacks is an HTML5 gaming platform that targets users from developing countries. It has more than 35 million registered users.
Bloomberg reports that some Area 120 teams were notified by Bloomberg this week that their projects have been reorganized. According to the outlet, some employees affected by the changes were contacted, and one of them estimated that approximately half of Area 120's teams had been affected. As a result, these people will need to look for work elsewhere at Google. A Google spokesperson said that Area 120 was closing down several projects to make room for new work. The group would "shift its focus to projects that draw on Google's deep investments in AI and have the potential to solve important user issues."
Only a year ago, Area 120 was reorganized and absorbed into the new "Google Labs" division by Clay Bavor, a veteran Googler. The Labs team is responsible for Google's AR/VR work and has its blockchain project. Although it is not clear if Google will be closing down any other experimental work, this type of news is coming at a steady pace.
By Saloni Behl
I always had a crush on technology that\'s why I love reviewing the latest tech for the readers.