X, The Moonshot Factory

🎧 You tuned in, they took notice—The Moonshot Podcast just picked up two silver Signal Awards for Best Editing and Best Science & Education podcasts! Big thanks to our listeners for voting and for joining us to hear how self-driving cars, laser-beamed internet, drone delivery and more went from being science fiction ideas to real world technologies and businesses.  Thanks also to the team at Blanchard House who helped create the series. To check out some of the other winners and find your next great listen, check out the Signal awards gallery: https://lnkd.in/gDrvuxG9

Tapestry was named one of Fast Company’s 2025 Next Big Things in Tech! “There is currently no working map of the world’s electric grid. Tapestry…is working to change that,” writes Executive Editor Morgan Clendaniel. “Its two products use machine learning to help quickly inspect grids and solve problems and plan for future grid expansion.” 🎉 Congratulations to the Tapestry team! Read more: https://lnkd.in/gcC4nzA8 #fctechawards

In honor of Ada Lovelace Day, we’re spotlighting AIDA, an X graduate named for the world’s first computer programmer. Project AIDA’s moonshot was to create code that could write and rewrite itself. After graduating from X in 2023, the team’s code generation foundational model, Codey, went on to accelerate software development across a range of Google products. For more on AIDA’s journey, tune into Episode 3 of The Moonshot Podcast, “Machines That Think,” and hear from AIDA Project Lead Olivia Hatalsky and VP of Engineering Scott Huffman, who led the team once they moved to Google: https://lnkd.in/gcBTMtvX

“Technology evolves very quickly, but humans don’t.” In the latest episode of The Moonshot Podcast’s Deep Dive video series, X’s Captain of Moonshots Astro Teller sat down with Google design leaders Ivy Ross and Isabelle Olsson, who led the team that created Google Glass, for a conversation about the unexpected challenges they faced designing such a bold new form factor, the surprising ways people ended up wanting to use Glass, and the importance of timing when building new technologies. Check out the full episode: https://lnkd.in/gXw9fMxy #TheMoonshotPodcast

“For decades, the recycling industry has sought ways to keep plastics in circulation rather than throwing them away forever.” Materra, X’s moonshot for circularity, worked with Alterra to demonstrate a groundbreaking technique for transforming plastic waste back into the oil needed to make more plastics. Learn how Materra’s technology was able to help Alterra produce 400,000 pounds of virgin-quality oil derived 100 percent from discarded plastic: https://lnkd.in/grtbATmk #materra

We’ve been named one of TIME's Best Inventions of 2025 ✨ We’re honored to be listed as one of the groundbreaking innovations that’s changing the way people live. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gh2ACqSh

X’s Captain of Moonshots Astro Teller recently sat down with John Werner at Imagination in Action. They discussed how X’s culture is designed to maximize bravery and creativity, why projects are purposely under-resourced, how we set “kill criteria” and more: https://lnkd.in/g9rPXjHn

The Moonshot Podcast chronicles the untold stories of innovation - both highs and lows - from 15 years inside Google’s Moonshot Factory. Go behind the scenes with the inventors and creators exploring the huge problems, radical solutions and breakthrough technologies that have the potential to reshape our world.  From the early days of Waymo self-driving cars, to more recent explorations into fusion, wildfire detection and more, this podcast gives you unprecedented access to the messy, exhilarating journey of turning science fiction into reality. Dive in to all the episodes of season one here. #TheMoonshotPodcast