On Fri, Feb 12, 2016 at 4:31 PM, Liam Wyatt <liamwyatt(a)gmail.com> wrote:
This Grant document for a “Knowledge Engine by
Wikipedia” is
*specifically and overtly stating* that its purpose is to start work
on an search engine as a rival for Google/Yahoo. That is the end goal
of the project.
See also:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/02/12/wikipedia_grant_build_search_engine…
It is, therefore, inconceivable to me that the
Executive Director
would privately propose to an external partner that they would
undertake a 6 year project to build a search-engine that will have
massive cost, staffing, strategic and content implications - entirely
without an official WMF strategy covering that period, no indication
in the current annual plan, without the awareness of the community,
and unclearly communicated to the Board. I find the fact that this
could have been done to be a deep breach of our values - and not
wholly unrelated to the current sudden exodus of long-serving members
of WMF staff.
Liam / Wittylama