phrase
Moonshot
An audacious, expensive, low-odds project pursued because the prize is enormous.
Origin
From John F. Kennedy's 1962 speech at Rice University: 'We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.' NASA hit the goal in 1969. Google adopted the term for its 'X' division in 2010; the venture-capital world adopted it shortly after.
Modern usage
Used to dignify any ambitious bet โ clean fusion, cancer cures, AGI, a new social network. Often invoked by people whose project is not actually a moonshot.
In the wild
It's not a feature; it's a moonshot.โ tech press clichรฉ
Tags
ambition
risk
innovation