Google's hardware SVP Rick Osterloh makes it clear that it's not chasing sales figures with Pixel smartphones

At the 'Made by Google' event, Google showed the world that it was serious about hardware. But is it really after sales, being a software-driven company at heart? In a lengthy exclusive with The Verge, Google's SVP of hardware, Rick Osterloh who once worked with Motorola, explained that Google has only one objective with hardware and that is still 'Search'.[caption id="attachment_4111561" align="alignleft" width="380"] Google's Senior Vice President Hardware, Rick Osterloh. Reuters[/caption]In the interview, which seems to have taken place long before the event, Osterloh told The Verge, that the Google's objectives with hardware are quite different from Apple. While Apple sells products, Google simply wants to sell you well-finished products that will drive you to eventually use Google search.Osterloh explained that the company investment in acquiring a part of HTC's smartphone division is completely different with what it did with Motorola earlier. While Osterloh was not involved when Google cooked up with deal with Motorola, Google did not have hardware as an objective back then. Now, all of that has changed, and with HTC the deal is completely different. Things have played out well with HTC, more so since Google has worked with HTC in the past, for its Nexus lineup as well.[caption id="attachment_4111055" align="alignnone" width="1280"] The Google Pixel 2XL alongside the Pixelbook.[/caption]When quizzed about whether Google is pursuing sales in numbers, the SVP said that, it is focussed on sales but only in certain markets. The priority for Google with the Pixel and other products is "consumer satisfaction and user experience."But while the benchmark isn't sales right now, Google hopes to sell products "in high volumes in five years." The focus is not just great hardware with software, like Apple does, but "hardware and software and AI" said the SVP of hardware because Google's main priority is still Search.