Google continues to look for electric and other alternatives to gas-guzzling, earth-warming cars.
Today, Google.org, the company’s philanthropic arm, said it will offer $10M to start-ups offering the best ideas for advancing “sustainable transportation.”
Google has supported non-profits in this area before, but this time it is backing for-profit ventures. “Consumers still can’t buy plug-in vehicles – and that’s a problem,” the company said in a statement. “The severity of global warming requires solutions from NGOs, governments, individuals and (very importantly) the private sector.”
The company has already made $1 million in grants to non-profit organizations.
Google said existing automakers need to bring their own cars to market, but that plug-in vehicles — ones you plug into a socket to recharge with electricity — also need its own ecosystem of companies in order to flourish.
One Comment
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Don Jones said:
I think Google should just create a venture capital arm, GooVP, and invest across all kinds of ‘do-Good’ concepts as a way of dealing with all the negative or suspicious press they’re getting…
3 Trackbacks
7:47 am
Google will give you $10.000.000 to save the world said:
[...] VentureBeat » Google offers $10M for best for-profit green car ideas [...]
5:46 pm
VentureBeat » Vinod Khosla: Hybrid-electric cars won’t make a difference said:
[...] on gasoline. Others are making fully electric cars, and several are venture backed. Google has added to the excitement by awarding money to green transportation ideas. Tesla is making a sports car electric vehicle, and has lots of [...]
4:20 am
Goo et la recherche verte said:
[...] l’instar de Yahoo! et son Yahoo! Green, ou de Google et son concours pour une voiture verte, le moteur de recherche Japonais Goo se lance dans un espace apprecié par les consommateurs [...]