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tetra,
This is amazing - excellent idea. Thanks for sharing.
We have the Amazon Alexa and love it - like having an obedient pet

Excellent link but a pity it's only for people in the USA.

According to my Google Home Hub, there are around 25 million severely disabled people in the USA. So that's 250 people per free Google Home Hub, assuming that Google sticks to its giveaway of 100,000. It only needs one of those people to say how wonderful the Google Home Hub is, for other people to want to rush out and buy one.  The giveaway could be a genuine gesture to help the disabled, rather than a marketing ploy.  Maybe Google are trying to show how philanthropic high-tech companies can be. which could potentially bring in millions more customers ("high-tech companies are doing wonderful things, giving away all those Google hubs, bless them").  High-tech companies are viewed with scepticism.  They have a negative press. People are losing their jobs due to artificial intelligence.  Giving stuff away to disabled people could be a cynical plot to persuade doubters that high-tech companies are benefiting mankind. Sorry, I'm just playing around with thoughts and words here.  At least Google are taking a small step to providing help for the disabled.  I guess it is a humanitarian gesture, even if it is a small one.  But roll it out in the world. There are 13.9 million severely disabled here in the UK. For a country with a population 67 million against 327 million in the USA, we appear to have a greater percentage of severely disabled people. So come on Google, take note. Per capita, the UK needs you more than the USA, which is a ridiculous way of looking at it because disability is the same the world over.

Google is worth $730 billion.  Apple is worth $900 billion.  What's a few Google hubs in context of such massive wealth.  Larry Page's net worth is around $52 billion.  Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos is worth $134.5 billion.  Can you imagine having that much money?  How can one person be that rich?  It's obscene when you consider the millions of USA citizens who are living hand to mouth and are struggling to survive.  Bezos and Page have Alexas and Google hubs coming out of their arses or asses as Americans say.

Hi Mike,

I think your first description is the right one. It is a way of priming the pump. Get units in circulation. Get people used to seeing what they can do. Move a lot of product a lot faster than with advertising alone.

I agree that tech companies are too rich. too rich and to influential. It disturbs me that the information I get is dependent on the google algorithm. I would definitely welcome competition in this area.

Also Google refused (on ethical grounds) to work on the US military AI program, but they DO work with the Chinese. That is a major problem.

As for the wealth of billionaires, I just did the math for curiosity's sake :

Worldwide, 2,208 billionaires possess $9.1 trillion. So what if we shared that money around ? Well, 9.1 Trillion divided by 7.5 Billion (the world'S population) we get, 1,213.00 $. That's it : one payment, one time, of about 1,000.- dollars for every man woman and child.

Clearly, poverty is not going to be alleviated by "making the rich pay".

In 1789, the Parisian mob sacked the french royal palaces. Fabulous wealth and treasure, right ? Well, most of the artwork just got broken. A few ladies came out wearing the queen's underwear. A funny hat here and there. Maybe someone took home a chair or two. And that was it.

In today's terms : What use is a Lamborghini with an empty gas tank to a hungry crowd ? What use is an olympic size swimming pool with marble columns ?

Sharing wealth is not, and never was a serious plan.

Only creating wealth will do.

Best,

Gordon

mikeq, if only they were genuinely wanting to help the disabled but I seriously doubt it, I think its just as you said, a marketing ploy disguised behind helping people.

Over here in Australia, supermarkets (we have 2 major supermarket chains, couple others but they demand a very small % of the population) have recently banned single use plastic bags in the checkout, they say that the bags end up in the ocean polluting the water and hurting marine life so they wish to help the environment, what customers have to do now is bring their own bags all of the time or purchase bags at checkout, those bags cost 15cents and are plastic (stronger than the single use ones)....theyre hypocritical, the supermarkets sell fruit and veg with plastic covering it, there is plastic everywhere which ends in the water....they are just using the environment as a marketing ploy to get people to buy bags.

Interesting info rhinehart, Thanks. I agree that redistributing wealth is not the way forward. But I like it when I hear that a super rich person or corporation gives some of their massive wealth to help others. Benefits a few and makes the man with the money feel good and I agree with tetra that it is good advertising. A few people have their life improved and good karma in the bank always nice.
I guess we should all do our bit to help our neighbours. Always easier and more practical than global gestures.