"Facebook has tapped one of its most veteran execs to lead all of its consumer hardware efforts, including the mysterious Building 8 division responsible for its forthcoming video chat device.
Andrew "Boz" Bosworth will oversee Building 8 and Oculus, Facebook's virtual reality arm, Business Insider has learned.
...
The device, codenamed Aloha, will feature a large touchscreen along with a camera and speakers and be capable of recognizing peoples' faces when they step into view, three people with knowledge of the device said.
...
One hurdle Building 8 has faced in its efforts to build its first device is consumer mistrust of Facebook protecting user privacy, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. The company conducted marketing studies for project Aloha and received overwhelming concern that Facebook would use the device to spy on users, according to one person with knowledge of the matter.
To assuage concerns about privacy, Facebook has considered creative ways to market Aloha, including pitching it as a device for letting the elderly easily communicate with their families. Building 8 employees have also considered creating new brand names beside Facebook to sell their gadgets under."
"Regina Dugan, the head of Facebook's secretive hardware lab called Building 8, is leaving the company after just 18 months.
It's unclear who will take over Dugan's role leading Building 8 on a day-to-day basis. Facebook recently promoted Andrew "Boz" Bosworth to run all of the company's hardware projects, but that also includes Oculus hardware, not just Building 8.
"There is a tidal shift going on in Silicon Valley, and those of us in this industry have greater responsibilities than ever before," Dugan said in a statement provided by a company spokesperson. "The timing feels right to step away and be purposeful about what's next, thoughtful about new ways to contribute in times of disruption."
At Facebook, Dugan oversaw a number of hardware efforts, none of which have actually launched, including a video chat device and a smart [microphone and] speaker, according to Business Insider."
[ What did she mean by "greater responsibilities"? Whats the "tidal shift"? ]
"The memo is classic Boz because it speaks to the majority of Facebook employee views but it's also polarizing. Tonally he doesn't mince words. This is clearly a post meant to rally the troops."
There is no record of Zuckerberg's response to the memo. However, a year later in August 2017, Bosworth was tapped to run the company's consumer hardware efforts."
"The natural state of the world is not connected," Bosworth wrote. "It is not unified. It is fragmented by borders, languages, and increasingly by different products. The best products don't win. The ones everyone use win."
That last statement suggests everyone is not using the best products.
It suggests the senior management at Facebook are well aware that their product is not the best.
As a user, I want the best products.FN1
Is there any reason I shouldnt?
Why should I settle?
There are many ways to communicate over the internet (cf. www), peer-to-peer being the original and one of the most versatile, IMO.
Using a single billions-page public website to communicate over the internet is one possible way, it has proven very popular, but if I understand the Bosworth statement correctly, it is not necessarily the best way.
Being "fragmented" (e.g. decentralized) may be a desirable characteristic for users communication if one of the goals is to avoid being an easy target for advertisers looking for massive pools of consumers all gathered in one place, which appears to be the definition of the Facebook "product".
FN1. Using the word "product" to describe what Facebook offers to the user is probably misleading. FB is only a "product" for advertisers. Users pay nothing and recieve nothing. They merely use a single website belonging to a Harvard computer science drop-out in order to "stay in touch". The website is designed to exploit that use for the purpose of selling advertising.
Andrew "Boz" Bosworth will oversee Building 8 and Oculus, Facebook's virtual reality arm, Business Insider has learned. ...
The device, codenamed Aloha, will feature a large touchscreen along with a camera and speakers and be capable of recognizing peoples' faces when they step into view, three people with knowledge of the device said.
...
One hurdle Building 8 has faced in its efforts to build its first device is consumer mistrust of Facebook protecting user privacy, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. The company conducted marketing studies for project Aloha and received overwhelming concern that Facebook would use the device to spy on users, according to one person with knowledge of the matter.
To assuage concerns about privacy, Facebook has considered creative ways to market Aloha, including pitching it as a device for letting the elderly easily communicate with their families. Building 8 employees have also considered creating new brand names beside Facebook to sell their gadgets under."
Source:
https://www.businessinsider.in/Facebook-is-unifying-its-hard...
"Regina Dugan, the head of Facebook's secretive hardware lab called Building 8, is leaving the company after just 18 months.
It's unclear who will take over Dugan's role leading Building 8 on a day-to-day basis. Facebook recently promoted Andrew "Boz" Bosworth to run all of the company's hardware projects, but that also includes Oculus hardware, not just Building 8.
"There is a tidal shift going on in Silicon Valley, and those of us in this industry have greater responsibilities than ever before," Dugan said in a statement provided by a company spokesperson. "The timing feels right to step away and be purposeful about what's next, thoughtful about new ways to contribute in times of disruption."
At Facebook, Dugan oversaw a number of hardware efforts, none of which have actually launched, including a video chat device and a smart [microphone and] speaker, according to Business Insider."
Source:
https://www.recode.net/2017/10/17/16488654/regina-dugan-face...
[ What did she mean by "greater responsibilities"? Whats the "tidal shift"? ]
"The memo is classic Boz because it speaks to the majority of Facebook employee views but it's also polarizing. Tonally he doesn't mince words. This is clearly a post meant to rally the troops."
There is no record of Zuckerberg's response to the memo. However, a year later in August 2017, Bosworth was tapped to run the company's consumer hardware efforts."
"The natural state of the world is not connected," Bosworth wrote. "It is not unified. It is fragmented by borders, languages, and increasingly by different products. The best products don't win. The ones everyone use win."
Source:
https://www.buzzfeed.com/ryanmac/growth-at-any-cost-top-face...
That last statement suggests everyone is not using the best products.
It suggests the senior management at Facebook are well aware that their product is not the best.
As a user, I want the best products.FN1
Is there any reason I shouldnt?
Why should I settle?
There are many ways to communicate over the internet (cf. www), peer-to-peer being the original and one of the most versatile, IMO.
Using a single billions-page public website to communicate over the internet is one possible way, it has proven very popular, but if I understand the Bosworth statement correctly, it is not necessarily the best way.
Being "fragmented" (e.g. decentralized) may be a desirable characteristic for users communication if one of the goals is to avoid being an easy target for advertisers looking for massive pools of consumers all gathered in one place, which appears to be the definition of the Facebook "product".
FN1. Using the word "product" to describe what Facebook offers to the user is probably misleading. FB is only a "product" for advertisers. Users pay nothing and recieve nothing. They merely use a single website belonging to a Harvard computer science drop-out in order to "stay in touch". The website is designed to exploit that use for the purpose of selling advertising.