Rumors of Apple’s arrival in the market for augmented and virtual reality glasses are getting stronger. And with the arrival of a behemoth in an industry led by Meta, there’s another company that doesn’t want to be isolated from the competition: Google.
Although it is true that it has already failed in a similar project with Google Glass, now Google is looking to enter fully into this rivalry with Project Iris.
What is Project Iris?
According to The Verge, Google is working on Project Iris to try to launch its own units in 2024.
Like upcoming headsets from Meta and Apple, Google’s device uses outward-facing cameras to combine computer graphics with a real-world video feed, “creating a more immersive mixed reality experience than augmented reality glasses.” Snap and Magic Leap,” according to the report.
Early prototypes being developed at a facility in the San Francisco Bay Area resemble a pair of ski goggles and don’t require a tethered connection to an external power source.
Google’s headphones are still in an early stage of development with no clearly defined go-to-market strategy, indicating that the target year of 2024 may be aspirational.
The hardware is powered by a custom processor from Google, like its newer Google Pixel smartphone, and runs on Android, though recent job listings indicate a unique operating system is in the works.
The executive overseeing the effort is Clay Bavor, who reports directly to CEO Sundar Pichai and also manages Project Starline, an ultra-high-resolution video chat booth that was demonstrated last year.
The announcement, of course, is not official and Google will not talk about it until it has something concrete. They will be interesting years for this sector of the market.
