Before augmented reality was ever a thing, there was Google Glass: a much hyped experiment that was ultimately a failure over issues like privacy (and just looking like a dork). At an I/O session yesterday with Deepmind CEO Demis Hassabis, Google co-founder Sergey Brin admitted that he made “mistakes” with Google Glass in several areas.
“I just didn’t know anything about consumer electronic supply chain chains, really, and how hard it would be to build that and have it it at a reasonable price point and managing all the manufacturing and so forth,” he said during the session.
Brin said that he’s still a believer in the form factor, though, adding that Xreal’s latest device looks like “normal glasses” without “that thing in front.” He noted that rather than going it alone as before, Google now has “great partners” in Samsung (the Project Moohan headset) and Xreal (Project Aura glasses) as part of the Android XR extended reality program.
There was also a “technology gap” when Google Glass came along in 2013 that no longer exists, according to Brin. “Now in the AI world, the things that these glasses can do to help you out without constantly distracting you, that capability is much higher,” he said
Google Glass wasn’t a complete flop. It’s easy to forget that the product soldiered on for many years after its debut, largely as an enterprise device, and was only fully discontinued in 2023. It also paved a path for future VR and AR wearables like the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Meta Quest and Apple Vision Pro. Come to think of it, though, none of those projects have exactly set the world on fire, either.
