Google Quietly Drops $2 Million into Wikipedia Coffers

By Nick Mokey February 17, 2010

Feeling a little guilty after ignoring Wikipedia’s donation drive all holiday season? You probably should, but consider your debt (and guilt) assuaged by the massive $2 million Google plunked into the Wikimedia Foundation piggy banks on Tuesday.

Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales broke the news in the most understated way possible: a simple tweet. Advisory board member Mitch Kapor confirmed it with his own tweet, and a formal announcement should be forthcoming sometime Wednesday.

Recommended Videos

The out-of-the-blue donation seems at odds with some of Google’s previous stances on Wikipedia. In 2007, it introduced Knol, a competitor to Wikipedia that never quite made it off the ground. Although pushing $2 million to a direct competitor would seem to represent a giant white flag, Knol is still alive and kicking.

Topics

Google

Editor in Chief

As Digital Trends’ Editor in Chief, Nick Mokey oversees an editorial team covering every gadget under the sun, along with…

Computing

Google Meet vs. Zoom

high school senior part 2 college freshman zoom classroom

With working from home more popular than ever, videoconferencing services like Google Meet and Zoom are proving to be invaluable resources for small businesses, major corporations, and everyday netizens alike. Google Meet has only been on the market since 2017, but Google released a free version of Meet in late April 2020 in response to gaining 100 million daily users due to global restrictions on working at the office.

Zoom remains the king of the heap, with over 200 million daily users and a bevy of sophisticated features. Still, the free version of Google Meet offers users a web-based videoconferencing service that doesn't require downloading a desktop version to use and is accessible for anyone who has a Google account. Each service has its pros and cons, but both are excellent at connecting people face-to-face across the internet at no cost. Read on to learn more about how Google Meet compares to Zoom and to determine which is best for you.

Cars

Google deploys a Jaguar I-Pace as its first all-electric Street View car

Google Street View's first all-electric car, a Jaguar I-Pace.

Google has captured well over 10 million miles of global Street View imagery since its camera-equipped cars first hit the streets 14 years ago.

But despite the emergence of greener vehicle technology, the company has only now gotten around to deploying its first all-electric Street View car.

Mobile

Google to ax its Shopping app in favor of web search

In its latest effort to streamline its myriad of offerings, Google has decided to send its Shopping app to the scrapyard.

Google is no stranger to axing apps and services when it feels that something no longer serves its purpose, and Shopping for Android and iOS is the latest casualty, the company has confirmed.