Explained: Moonshots

The grey space between sci-fi and radical technology

By

Tzen Szen

on August 7, 2015 1.25pm

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Back in September 12th 1962, U.S. President John F. Kennedy delivered what is known to be the "We choose to go to the Moon" speech before a crowd of 35,000 people in Houston, Texas. Fast forward 7 years later, the Apollo 11 mission succeeded in landing a man to the moon and returning him safely back to Earth. These series of events changed the world and not only marks the first ever landing of man on the moon but also the birth of the word "moonshot".

Enter 2015, the term is used by search giant, Google, albeit rather differently as they use it to describe to their many audacious projects that notably include Google Glass, Project Loon, special contact lenses that detect blood sugar levels and self-driving cars. These moonshots are given birth in a special division of Google called Google[x], their so-called "Moonshot Factory". So, what exactly encompasses a moonshot?

A moonshot is essentially made up of 3 things. The first would be a huge problem. To define a huge problem, think about how many people it is currently or potentially affecting people around the world. The more people it affects, the larger the problem. These would include the global energy crisis, healthcare inequalities, finding better ways to diagnose and treat cancer, and climate change.

Huge problem + radical solution + breakthrough technology = Moonshot

The second component of a moonshot is a radical solution that stands on the edge of science fiction. For example, the number of road traffic accidents that occur annually are staggering. Some solutions are to educate drivers better about road safety, having better road conditions, etc. but although they are considered solutions, they aren't considered radical solutions seeing that there are still many accidents that happen everyday. Since most accidents are caused by human error, why don't humans stop driving and let self-driving cars do the job? Well hang on, can we actually build self-driving cars capable of transporting us around safely and efficiently in the first place?

This brings me to the last part of the moonshot equation which is breakthrough technology that ties everything together. The importance of this breakthrough technology or scientific reason is to ensure that it is not completely insane to go and try to solve that problem. Coming back to the car, there are sensors and software now available that are sophisticated enough for a car to know it's own location, what's around it, to make predictions about it's environment, and what it should do next, just like how a person thinks while driving. Fulfilling these 3 components will then yield a moonshot.

Think 10X

The underlying ethos about moonshots is to think 10X (10 times) instead of 10% to have a chance of really changing things and what I like most about this concept is that it represents a disciplined method of solving the huge problems around us. Using science and technology to bring almost magical solutions to life makes me marvel at what humans have accomplished and can continue accomplishing stemming from the small and personal to the large and audacious.

While the term moonshot is relatively new, the idea of moonshots have been around throughout human history. No one at first really knew how the human body works, how to build an airplane, or if the world was round. What these accomplishments illustrate is the fundamental curiosity and wonder that humans have that pushes humanity forward. When President Kennedy announced that the United States was going to send a man to the moon, the most poetic and beautiful part about the whole thing is the fact that he basically said, "Look, we don't know how to do this yet, but we're gonna do it anyway," and it really does set others on fire because if that really happens, what can't we do?