Nest co-founder Matt Rogers is leaving Google


It's been a little more than four years since Google acquired Nest for $3.2 billion, and now both co-founders have left the company. Former CEO Tony Fadell departed in 2016 to be replaced by former cable exec Marwan Fawaz, followed today by co-founder and chief product officer Matt Rogers. In a tweet, Rogers said that after nine years spent building Nest he's "decided to begin my transition to dedicate more of my time to Incite.org, as well as to start thinking about the next adventure."

The announcement also comes just a day after Google announced that Nest will join forces with its other hardware teams, which hardware VP Rick Osterloh said would "supercharge Nest's mission." While Rogers specifically cited spending more time working on his venture firm Incite, the timing comes as Google takes more control over the "thoughtful home" products Nest sells.

After the acquisition, Fadell promised not to force any privacy changes and the company's FAQ notes that its accounts aren't linked with Google. Privacy concerns also reportedly got in the way of an Echo-like assistant from Nest a few years ago, but now Google Home and Assistant can control Nest devices, and with the teams merging we'd anticipate seeing more integration going forward. As Osterloh put it "By working together, we'll continue to combine hardware, software and services to create a home that's safer, friendlier to the environment, smarter and even helps you save money—built with Google's artificial intelligence and the Assistant at the core."

Source: Matt Rogers (Twitter)

via Engadget RSS Feed "http://ift.tt/2FVEohu"

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Evernote cuts staff as user growth stalls

Image
Note-taking app Evernote has fallen on hard times of late, culminating in its latest spate of job cuts impacting 15 percent of its workforce (54 employees). CEO Chris O' Neil -- an ex-Googler who took the reins in 2015 -- announced the firings at an all-hands meeting earlier today, reports TechCrunch . In a message on the Evernote blog , O' Neill admitted he'd set "incredibly aggressive goals" for the company in 2018. He continued: "Going forward, we are streamlining certain functions, like sales, so we can continue to speed up and scale others, like product development and engineering." The layoffs follow an exec exodus just weeks ago and the company's recent brand refresh (complete with a refined logo and wordmark). But critics are more concerned about its product, especially the free tier, which they claim lacks the perks to
Read more

The best air conditioner

Image
By Liam McCabe This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter . When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, it may earn affiliate commissions that support its work. Read the full article here . After six summers of researching, testing, and recommending window air conditioners, we've learned that quiet and affordable ACs make most people the happiest—and we think the LG LW8016ER will fit the bill in most rooms. This 8,000 Btu unit cools as efficiently and effectively as any model with an equal Btu rating, and runs at a lower volume and deeper pitch than others at this price. Little extra features like a fresh-air vent, two-axis fan blades, and a removable drain plug help set it apart, too. The LG LW8016ER is a top choice for an office or den, and some people will find it quiet enough for a bedroom, too. If our main pic
Read more

We won't see a 'universal' vape oil cartridge anytime soon

Image
Pre-loaded cartridges of cannabis concentrate are currently among the most popular means of consumption, and for good reason. They're discreet to use and easy to handle, a far cry from the dark days of 2016 when we had to dribble hash oil or load wax into narrow-mouthed vape pens by hand. But, frustratingly, an ever increasing number of oil cartridge manufacturers employ one-off design standards so that their products won't work with those of their competitors, thereby locking customers into proprietary ecosystems. We've already seen this with nicotine vaporizers -- which has a seen a massive rise in "pod systems" in the last few years, each outfitted with a unique canister and battery built to be incompatible with those of their competition. Is it too late for the burgeoning cannabis industry to set a universal standard for their product designs?
Read more