Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates delivered his last scheduled speech as the full-time chairman of Microsoft (MSFT) this morning. He spoke at length about Microsoft’s application development plan, the August debut of Internet Explorer 8 and the company’s efforts to compete with Google (GOOG). But all paled in comparison to his discussion of Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio and the egg-throwing Ballmer-bot created with it. Transcript and video below …
Bill Gates: Good; we’ve got the Ballmer-bot pretty excited here. It’s an amazing-looking robot. It’s just balancing itself, and fantastic.
Patrick Deegan: Yeah, what you see here is the latest in robotics technology. The Ballmer-bot features a dynamically stable mobile base, a rotating torso and two dexterous arms. This makes it so that it’s even able to throw eggs.
John Paczkowski has been poking fun at the tech industry and the personalities that drive it since 1997. From 1999 to 2007, he wrote the award-winning tech news Web log Good Morning Silicon Valley for the San Jose Mercury News, Silicon Valley's daily newspaper. Read more »
Here is a statement of my ethics and coverage policies. It is more than most of you want to know, but, in the age of suspicion of the media, I am laying it all out.
12:58 AM: Breakfast: Two schools of fish from Tokyo Bay. Calories: 782,000. How I was feeling when I ate this: confused, irradiated, hating my size. 11:37 AM: Exercise: “Taxi Stomp” (alternating legs, for 30 blocks). Calories burned: 148,900,183.
1983. The Beatles announce their first tour in thirteen years, but likewise announce that Michael Jackson will be going on tour with them as a one gigantic mega-concert event.
Comments
It is a sad day when I can’t tell if it is satire or not.
One minute I think yes: The Ballmer Bot and the next Bill says something serious.
Final speech. So pathetic.
Posted by Dave Barnes at June 3rd, 2008 at 9:01 pmVista is struggling.
IE is losing marketshare.
Microsoft is making lots of money, but will it be around in 15 years?