Google Labs was launched in May of 2002. The idea was to create a "playground" for Google engineers to experiment with crazy new ideas, mostly done as side projects during twenty percent time.
Over the years, Google Labs has incubated some big projects, such as Google Spreadsheets (Which later became Google Docs), Google Desktop, Google Maps, and Google Trends. It's also helped launch some small projects that significantly enhanced existing Google products.
In 2011, with an annoucement that Google would be putting "more wood in fewer arrows," Google Labs formally joined the Google Graveyard. That doesn't mean that Google will end all Google Labs experiments. Some will go on to graduate and become products with full Google support, and individual apps will maintain their own labs, so you'll still see TestTube, Blogger in Draft, and other similar test labs for pre-release products. What you won't see is the same number of crazy ideas as standalone products.
