I notice that Microsoft has set up Live Labs, a rapid development and prototyping group which will work on new ideas and directions and engage outside collaborators. From the manifesto by Gary Flake:
This pattern is not merely about new applications. It’s about a revolution in how we create, share, and refine anything that can be digitally encoded, be it news and information, artistic forms, scientific breakthroughs, personal communications, economic transactions, and, yes, even software. This is not Web 2.0. It’s World 2.0.
It goes on to read:
Charter & Mission Inline with our vision, Live Labs’ near-term charter is to bootstrap a virtuous cycle in three parts: (1) empower Microsoft employees to more rapidly create great Internet technologies; (2) sponsor higher bandwidth exchanges of ideas and innovations between our internal partners, academia, and the Internet community; and (3) foster a community of people and projects which will inspire others to join us in this mission. Since success in any one part requires the others, our primary reason for existence is to cultivate the existing seeds of the virtuous cycle within Microsoft.
There is substantial resource behind this. It is a collaboration between MSN which is adding 100 positions and Mircrosoft Research which is adding 30 positions to work on Live Labs.
It is interesting to see the continuity with the Live theme established by MS.
Via Ray Ozzie’s Weblog.
