Remember the Google barge? The mysterious, floating behemoth that was at one point a data center, then a showroom for Glass, then a party barge for press, then a mobile laboratory for X Labs? Whatever it really ends up being, it’s on hold. The Coast Guard has asked for changes to the interior, and the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) is taking issue as well.
The Coast Guard is reportedly asking for changes to be made on the interior of the barge, though no specifics as to what was asked of Google are known. That info comes courtesy of the BCDC, who met with Google recently regarding their plans for the vessel. According to them, those plans aren’t even clear to Google. In a statement to CNET, Brad McCrea, Director of Regulatory Affairs for the BCDC said “We have learned that the barge is still under construction, albeit in a hiatus, and likely will not be completed until late spring 2014. In addition, Google is still exploring options for how to use the barge when it is completed.”
Google has always been annoyingly coy about their plans for this floating monstrosity, as if being opaque would somehow distract the world from their plans. There are also several of these around the world, so we’re not sure if this news relates to the floating barnacle magnet in San Francisco, or all of them. This particular barge has tight security, while the others simply sit there without much fanfare.
The barge is not intended to be finished until well into 2014 at this point, so if it really was some sort of worldwide Glass showroom — it might not be available for launch. We should also keep in mind that we really don’t know what it’s going to be. We know Google accepts responsibility for it, but as for the plans, who knows.
