larrypage
Google CEO Larry Page.

Well, that was probably the first and last time we’ll ever hear a tech exec talk about avocados on an earnings call.

Google CEO Larry Page just wrapped up his company’s second quarter earnings call, during which he touched on topics like automated cars, the new Moto X smartphone and the amount of calories in an avocado.

That last bit was in reference to Google’s progress with its expanding search platform, which now includes nutritional information.

“It’s good to have the facts if you want to keep healthy,” Page said.

On a more pressing note, Page briefly talked about the much-anticipated Moto X smartphone from Google-owned Motorola.

googlecar“Finally I know you’re all eagerly anticipating what Motorola is launching soon,” Page said. “Having been a tester for a while, I’m really excited.”

He wouldn’t elaborate much more than that on the device, which could be announced as soon as next week.

Page was also asked about the progress of Google’s driverless cars.

“It’s still in the very early stage, but I’m very excited about it,” he said. “I think it has potential to have tremendous impact on people’s lives in terms of mobility.” 

Page said that “it’s always a mistake to assume technology will be static,” which is why he likes giving employees time to work on outside-the-box ideas, like high-speed Internet from solar-powered balloons floating in the stratosphere. He likened it to always having a portfolio of small teams working on crazy ideas.

“Those projects always start with a small group of people that make traction — that’s the only way we end up with things like Android and Chrome,” he said. “We want to make sure we create those opportunities and grow them.”

The search giant’s second quarter earnings posted Thursday came up short of analyst estimates both for revenue and profit.

Wall Street predicted that the company would report second-quarter earnings per share (EPS) of $10.78 on revenue of $14.45 billion. However, Google actually posted non-GAAP earnings per share of $9.56 on revenues of $14.11 billion, which is up 19 percent year-over-year.

You can check out Page’s opening statement here, or listen to the full earnings call here:

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