WSJ Tech News Briefing

Episode: The Google Division That Embraces Failure
Date: September 26, 2025
Host: Katie Dayton
Notable Guests: Chris Maher (WSJ Reporter), Helen Riley (CFO & COO, Google X), Wendy Bounds (WSJ Leadership Institute)

Episode Overview

This episode of the WSJ Tech News Briefing explores two powerful stories about innovation—one about ambitious plans struggling to get off the ground (Intel in Ohio) and one about the internal culture of wild experimentation and learning from failure at Google X, Alphabet’s “moonshot factory.” The main focus and unique insight comes from Helen Riley, CFO and COO of Google X (“X”), who discusses how the organization fosters radical innovation by embracing the possibility—and value—of failure.

Intel’s Semiconductor Project in Ohio: Promises and Delays

(00:19–05:07)

Setting the Scene: New Albany, Ohio

• Chris Maher paints a picture of New Albany as an affluent, planned community outside Columbus, now home to major data centers and the site of Intel's high-profile chip factory investment.

  “I would be down a one lane country road and then all of a sudden I’m at this massive data center complex.” (01:35, Chris Maher)

Initial Optimism and Local Expectations

• In 2022, Intel announced a flagship $28 billion project (originally $20 billion) to turn Ohio into the “silicon heartland,” promising:
  • 7,000 construction jobs
  • 3,000 full-time factory jobs
• Locals were promised “transformative” economic impact and state leadership hailed it as a historic win.

  “There was so much optimism and enthusiasm initially.” (02:23 Chris Maher)

Delays and Challenges

• The project delayed multiple times; opening now pushed to 2030 at the earliest (a five-year delay). Workforce has been cut by 30%, and only about 1,000 construction workers remain on site.

  “...the first of two factories would open in 2030. So five year delay, that’s at the earliest.” (03:15, Chris Maher)

Why the Stumbles?

• Intel doesn’t currently have a clear customer or product focus for the new facility; construction is being “adjusted” in response to uncertain market demand and chip industry competition.

  “The company doesn’t really have a clear customer at this point and you know exactly know which product it’s going to be making.” (03:54, Chris Maher)

Political and Economic Fallout

• The state provided $2 billion in incentives, including almost $700 million in infrastructure.
• Some politicians now express frustration, with one senator calling for a fraud investigation as costs and local disruptions mount.

  “There’s been a lot of, I’d say maybe consternation… it’s really been disruptive and a bit of an economic hardship for people there.” (04:28, Chris Maher)

Google X: Innovation by Embracing Failure

(05:57–12:04)

Inside the Moonshot Factory

• Helen Riley offers a rare look inside X, Alphabet’s advanced R&D division (“moonshot factory”), which produces cutting-edge projects but is equally known for “recycling” or sunsetting bold bets.

Notable Projects and Their Trajectories

• Waymo: Self-driving cars aiming to reduce the 1 million annual global road fatalities.

  “They’ve driven 100 million miles on roads to date, and they're serving about 250,000 rides every single week.” (06:33, Helen Riley)

• Wing: Drone deliveries, now partnering with Walmart and vital during natural disasters.

  “You can literally get on an app and have goods delivered to your door in a matter of minutes... they partnered with Walmart to actually get those supplies delivered.” (07:10, Helen Riley)

• Loon: High-altitude balloons intended to provide Internet connectivity to underserved populations. Although technologically sound, it couldn’t achieve economic viability and was discontinued.

  “Even though the technology worked, we couldn’t actually get the techno economics to work.” (07:58, Helen Riley)

• Tara: Born from Loon’s “compost”—not just knowledge, but teams and culture—now delivering high-speed internet in regions of India, Africa, and the Americas.

  “If you’re working on a Moonshot idea...you want people to still work on it and give it a try. And one of the ways that we can actually inspire people...is if they know that the thing they're working on has the potential to have a second life.” (09:21, Helen Riley)

The Philosophy: Learning > Perfection

• X’s remarkable ability is to learn from failure—sometimes called “moonshot compost”—and apply those learnings elsewhere.

• The unique organizational incentives at X reward the journey, curiosity, and learning, instead of only successful, goal-hitting outcomes.

  “I have not failed I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” (10:21, Helen Riley, quoting Thomas Edison)

• Riley explains that rewarding only goal completion would lower ambition:

  “If you only reward hitting the goal, what are people going to do? They’re going to lower their ambition. And that’s the last thing that we want.” (11:00, Helen Riley)

Tactics for Everyday Innovation

• Helen Riley emphasizes cultivating:
  • Humble, growth-oriented mindset
  • Passion and willingness to try the unprecedented
  • Safety to “face complete uncertainty” without fear of being penalized for honest failure
• These insights, she argues, translate to any company or team looking to push beyond incremental innovation into the unknown.

  “We really focus on how do we reward the learnings and the journey and the fact that they actually tried something difficult.” (11:00, Helen Riley)

Memorable Quotes

• Helen Riley:

  “Moonshot compost... see whether a new idea can grow.” (08:42)
  “If you’re working on a Moonshot idea... you want people to still work on it and give it a try. And one of the ways that we can actually inspire people... is if they know that the thing they’re working on has the potential to have a second life.” (09:21)
  “I have not failed I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” (10:21, quoting Edison)
  “If you only reward hitting the goal, what are people going to do? They’re going to lower their ambition. And that’s the last thing that we want.” (11:00)

Key Takeaways

• Truly transformative innovation requires rewarding bold attempts and lessons learned, not just end results.
• Failed experiments at X can take on “second lives”—ideas, technology, and even team members are re-used in new directions.
• This mindset lowers the fear of failure and raises the stakes and ambition for creative problem solving.

Timestamps

• 00:19–05:07: Intel’s Ohio plant—delays, local impact, and political concerns
• 05:57–12:04: Google X deep dive—project showcase, the culture of learning from failure, and advice for fostering innovation

(Advertisements, host intros, and outros have been omitted for clarity and focus.)