There had been quite a bit of speculation about the purpose of two very large Google owned barges floating in the seas to the East and West of the USA. The barges are home to large structures made of shipping containers welded together four stories high. One of the vessels is moored in San Francisco bay, the other off the East coast near the state of Maine.
A CNet reporter first linked the large barges’ to Mountain View last month but had no facts concerning their purpose. The initial speculation was that the barges housed some sea water cooled (or wave generator powered) data centres. Further speculation followed, with the barges being purported to be designed as party venues or water cruising Google showrooms that would tour either coast.
Wave powered data centre? No.
Google has put us straight, kind of, by dispelling the rumours but then was still pretty vague about the exact purpose of the off-shore spaces it has created. “Google Barge … A floating data center? A wild party boat? A barge housing the last remaining dinosaur?” Google’s statement joked. “Sadly, none of the above. Although it’s still early days and things may change, we’re exploring using the barge as an interactive space where people can learn about new technology.”
Floating party venue? No.
The New York Times ties this news neatly with something Google’s co-founder and chief executive, Larry Page, said at its I/O developers conference in June. At that time Page mused that people are often scared of new technology and he wanted a place to exist where people were open to experimentation, away from regulations, “Maybe we should set aside a small part of the world... an environment where people can try out different things,” he suggested. The East and West coast barges are those places.
BAL0011: Steve Ballmer joins Google and works from a floating HQ in international waters? No.
