BEST OF THE WEB: How Peter Theil went from Facebook to floating fortresses

Peter Thiel is one of the most fascinating characters in Silicon Valley. He’s the co-founder of PayPal, an initial investor in Facebook and one of the most prolific investors, placing seeds in companies such as LinkedIn and Friendster.

But he’s also well known for some other less typical ventures. One of his latest is a doozy – he recently gave over $1 million to a foundation that intends to build sovereign nations on platforms based out at sea free from regulations and laws.

In a new profile over at Details.com, Thiel expands on his plans to build these new types of city states that are planned to have tens of millions of residents by 2050.

“We’re at this pretty important point in society… where we can either find a way to rediscover a frontier, or we’re going to be forced to change in a way that’s really tough.” 

“One of the things that’s endlessly dazzling and mesmerising is this question about the future – what the world is going to be like in 20 years, and what can or should we do to make it better than the default track that it’s on.”

The piece highlights some key issues Thiel constantly debates – the role of government, the nature of modern technology and the question over what the future will look like and how entrepreneurs can make it happen.

He expresses disappointment in tech, bemoaning that the last successful car company was founded in 1941. Recent comments regarding the offshore nation project highlight Thiel’s outlook on life – his belief that he is constantly one step ahead.

“There are quite a lot of people who think it’s not possible.”

“That’s a good thing. We don’t need to really worry about those people very much, because since they don’t think it’s possible they won’t take us very seriously. And they will not actually try to stop us until it’s too late.”

The patent black hole

One of the biggest issues facing the tech industry right now is the willingness of giants to sue anybody and everybody over infringing patents. Apple, HTC, Google and Microsoft are just some of the companies embroiled in massive legal battles over royalties and disputes for patents that have changed hands multiple times.

They’ve even informed major buying decisions, such as Google’s acquisition of Motorola.

A new piece in the New York Times examines the dark side of this patent war. Patents were originally designed to foster innovation, but instead they’ve become the catalyst for businesses to stifle competition.

“This patent gold rush has a darker side. It is diverting money for innovation from industries crucial to the economic future of the United States, analysts say. Patents were created as an incentive for innovation, giving inventors a temporary right to commercialise their ideas, without others copying them.”

“While the recent blockbuster patent deals may make sense for the companies, analysts say, they are fed largely by legal considerations – asserting patent claims or defending against claims – rather than economic ones.”

The piece warns that consumer goods prices could even rise if patent disputes continue.

The debate is worth reading up on. A recent radio show from This American Life outlined the history and current issues that make up the patent disputes, and helps provide a decent amount of background.

Will Google buy Hulu?

Google made a lot of noise this week when it bought Motorola for $US12.5 billion. But while this acquisition will bolster its position as a market leader in the smartphone space, there’s another acquisition that could be much more interesting.

All Things Digital has recently reported that video streaming site Hulu is taking bids this week. Apple, Yahoo and Google are all apparently involved – and a Google bid makes sense.

“At the end of June, Google had $39 billion lying around, and it makes a couple billion more in profits each quarter. And Google biz dev boss David Drummond made a point of telling investors this morning that the $12.5 billion Google wants to spend on Motorola won’t slow it from making other deals.”

Adding Hulu and YouTube together would make sense, but whether Google will actually make a bid or not remains to be seen.

Technology failures hit the US Navy

Part of the problem with relying on new technology is that it often fails. Only after certain systems have been used for years are they accepted into regular use and common problems are erased.

The United States’ Navy ran into trouble a few years ago when a new warship – its first in 20 years – suffered major technical faults. It was designed to be the warship of the future, but instead came years late and over budget.

“Meanwhile, mechanical and structural problems festered inside the ship, the symptoms of a rushed design process,” a new piece on Wired reveals. “In 2010 and 2011, Freedom and a sister vessel would both suffer serious maintenance failures within months of each other.”

The construction of the vessel is a chronicle of design mishaps, management failures and a lack of vision. It’s a reminder that technology alone can’t deliver benefits.