>programmers get upset about the words “master/slave” in software now, but are happy to keep constructing a global surveillance economy and becoming middle caste
My prediction is that he is going to sick with his version that this was an experiment, the headcount was necessary to fully explore the idea, it became obvious that it wasn't possible to do ethically, Google isn't going to do it.
The real question to me is what this is going to do to Google's internal transparency.
That's how US lost Africa, and China acquired it.
China will surpass the US in Africa, but they’ll surpass the US in everything economic, eventually.
[0] https://www.statista.com/statistics/188594/united-states-dir... [1] https://www.brookings.edu/blog/africa-in-focus/2018/07/25/fi...
Fortunately Google is an ethical company and not hypocritical when it comes to very important issues.
Maybe this will be positive and result in new US law like the foreign corrupt practices act of 1977 [1] that prevents US companies and their subsidiaries from bribing officials in other countries, even when local law allows it. So forcing US companies to follow the minimal US laws protecting privacy even if to comply with other laws will be a net positive for humanity.
[0] https://www.blog.google/outreach-initiatives/diversity/note-...
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_Corrupt_Practices_Act