Publication Date：06/01/2011
Source： Taiwan Today
By Meg Chang
Google Inc. will set up a Chrome operating system center in Taiwan to leverage Taiwan’s information technology hardware manufacturing capability, the Internet service provider said May 31. Company Senior Vice President Sundar Pichai made the announcement at a news conference during the 2011 Computex Taipei, one of the world’s top three computer shows. “We have already recruited many engineers and are looking forward to hiring more over the course of next year to ramp up this effort in Taiwan,” Pichai said. The executive said the firm will engage Taiwan’s original design and equipment manufacturers to develop its Chromebook, a portable personal computer that runs on the Google Chrome OS and employs cloud computing technology. The notebook, which boasts faster speeds and lower prices, marks another venture by Google into the IT hardware sector, following its smartphone Nexus One in early January 2010. The firm will also team up with local telecommunications service operators to develop related applications and online services, Pichai added.
Sources familiar with the issue said Pichai has met with senior executives from several of Taiwan’s top IT firms to cement ties and share Google’s Chrome vision and strategies. These companies include Acer Inc., AsusTek Computer Inc., Foxconn Technology Group and HTC Corp. Google’s first Chromebook models, made in collaboration with Taiwan’s Acer Inc. and South Korea’s Samsung Electroincs Co., and priced between US$349 and US$499, are expected to hit the market later this June, Google said. (HZW)
