Another Moon Shot Project: Google Launches Sidewalk Labs, Aims for More Livable Cities

Google is popular as a search engine and for its other related services and products. The multinational technology company however has not stopped at "organizing the world's information". From time to time, it takes on projects that use technology to solve society problems. Just recently, it took upon itself to make lives better by improving living conditions in cities and other urban areas.

The technology giant has formed a New York based company- Sidewalk Labs- that is focused on tackling issues including cost of living, transportation, energy usage, pollution, greenspace and more.

Google CEO Larry Page, in a Google+ post announced that the company has invested in Sidewalk Labs, an urban innovation company that is led by former Bloomberg CEO Dan Doctoroff. Doctoroff is also a former Deputy Mayor of Economic Development and Rebuilding for the City of New York.

"This is an area where I hope we can really improve people's lives, similar to Google(x) and healthcare-focused Calico," writes Larry Page. 

It will develop new technology, buy and invest in other companies, and serve as a kind of incubator for urban technology.

Without revealing specifics, Larry added that company's investment in Sidewalk Labs is relatively modest, but is optimistic that it can address urban living issues in a more holistic manner.

"Sidewalk will focus on improving city life for denizens by developing and incubating urban technologies to deal with cost of living, energy usage, pollution, green space, transportation," he added.

Speaking about his interaction with Dan Doctoroff, Larry posted, "Everytime I talk with Dan I feel an amazing sense of opportunity because of all the ways technology can help transform cities to be more livable, flexible and vibrant. I want to thank +Adrian who helped to bring Dan on board."

Hinting that the task is not a walk in the park, Larry said "Making long-term, 10 times bets like this is hard for most of companies to do, but Sergey and I have constantly believed that it is important. And as more number of people around the world live, work and settle in cities, the prospects for improving our urban environments are endless."

Larry Page declares now is the time to hit the streets and get to work.

"By improving urban technology, it is possible to significantly improve the living condition of billion of people around the world.  With this new company, we want to boost the existing efforts in areas including housing, energy, transportation and government to address real issues that denizens face on a daily basis, he added.

Sidewalk Lab's CEO Dan Doctoroff in an official announcement offers Sidewalk Labs' mission of making cities more efficient through technology by developing new products, platforms and advanced infrastructure that can be replicated in cities all over the world.