Right now if I look at Google Maps, I can tell you that three streets away there is a bank up of traffic leading from the city to the western suburbs. Of course Google knows everything but this ingenious bit of software began as a start-up by an Israeli army officer with an engineering degree.

It was sold to Google for $US1.3 billion and the deal ensured that each of the start-up's 100 employees would receive an average of $1.2 million...

Image: 'If you don't have the chance to fail, you simply can't win.' Illustration: Peter Riches