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Sun Microsystems Laboratories has a corporate mandate to search for the undiscovered. We look for novel approaches and methodologies. And we take on the projects that product groups can't, such as ideas that won't be practical for years, projects with high risk or uncertainty, or concepts outside the mainstream of Sun's current focus. Even though our research may push the boundaries of what is possible, we work hard to keep our development focused on what is practical and profitable. 
Since 1991, ideas developed and refined at Sun Labs have played a major role in steering the direction of Sun, the high-tech industry, and even the way people work and play. Sun Labs' technologies, products, and people have had a multi-billion-dollar impact on the economy and have helped Sun and its customers create breakaway business strategies. Measuring Impact: Beyond the Bottom LineThere is no magic formula for quantifying the impact Sun Labs has had, but clearly it has played a key role in Sun's growth from a $3 billion company in 1991 to a $19 billion global corporation by 2001. And the influence of Sun Labs extends far beyond Sun's financial results. To cite just a few examples:
Yet Sun Labs is far more than a fountainhead of ideas for Sun's product divisions. Sun Labs is also:
People often imagine that the process of innovation is fluid and linear. The reality of applied research does not bear this out. Projects can take 10 years to yield tangible results, as was the case with asynchronous technology, now an extremely promising alternative for designing faster circuits. Sometimes the road to shipping a product is bumpy and circuitous, as was the case with Java technology. And sometimes the development of a technology involves many people from many places, not a single individual working in isolation. Therefore, it is more accurate--and more interesting--to view the impact of Sun Labs not simply in terms of "inventions" but in terms of technologies, products, and people influenced over the years. The matrix below provides just a small sampling of Sun Labs' impact with many of the examples drawn from Sun Labs' tenth anniversary volume of collected papers, "The First Ten Years," a chronological overview of selected Sun Labs' projects from opening to the present.
Risky Business: How Sun Labs Beats the OddsGiven the extreme competitive pressure today's high-tech companies face, one might expect research labs to be a fixture at every large high-tech venture. The need for a steady stream of innovation is obvious, while the cost of losing the capability to innovate is well documented by the downfalls of once-dominant companies such as Wang, Data General, and Ashton-Tate. Yet research labs are actually less common in high-technology enterprises today than in traditional industry. The reason: high-tech research can be very risky business. Conventional business investments are calibrated in terms of risks and rewards. But determining either the risks or the potential rewards of a high-tech research project can be all but futile. "Deciding which projects get funded and which do not involves weighing many factors beyond economics," said Jim Mitchell, Sun Fellow and Vice President, Director of Sun Labs, "but the starting point is the research strategy. At Sun Labs, our strategy is to develop technologies that are relevant, that have the potential to solve real customer problems, that seem feasible given the constraints of time, money, and technical staff resources, and that will directly benefit Sun. Our work then focuses on the objective of technology transfer. "That is not a traditional research strategy," Dr. Mitchell continued. "In the past, many research labs took on projects that had no direct relevance to the company's business or that had no set limits in terms of funding or time frames. We want to see results that make a direct impact on Sun and its customers." Even though Sun Labs' researchers are sensitive to Sun product and customer needs, Sun Labs was founded with the mandate to be the "eyes and ears" for the company. It's the Labs' job to keep an eye on the horizon and to evaluate technical trends. Some current projects are organized around technological themes (for example, Java development, tools and chips, networking). Some reflect a researcher's vision of future technological directions and some a unique solution to a technical challenge. But all are driven by the convergence of technologies, researchers' interests and skills, and relevance to Sun's future business.
Looking for the Next Big IdeaSince its founding more than a decade ago, Sun Labs has played a major role in the development of Sun, the computer industry, and the Net economy. In the decade ahead, look to Sun Labs to extend its record of producing tangible technologies that matter. We're looking into the ideas that will shape the future, today. For example:
Sun Labs will also continue to take a lead role in identifying, defining, and guiding the key technological trends that are shaping our future. For example, in a recently published article, former Sun Labs Director and current Sun CTO Greg Papadopolous examines The Secrets of the Supernets. In Mr. Papadopolous's words, "The researchers at Sun Labs are not only open to new ideas, but also to finding ways to make them practical." Related Links
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