Google Glass was ahead of its time, introducing the world to the fascinating new area of augmented reality. Google promoted the idea of wearable technology as a means to seamlessly integrate digital information into the user’s physical world. But changes in public opinion forced Google Glass to turn away from consumer applications and towards purely business uses, and following this pivot, the project was eventuallyshut downearlier this year. Despite rumors about Google getting back into smart glasses again with its“Project Iris” AR initiative, we’re now hearing those plans have also been scrapped, marking the end of yet another chapter in Google’s AR history.
Iris supposedly underwent numerous iterations during its lifecycle. However, despite the plans and progress, Iris was unceremoniously abandoned earlier this year following a period of reorganization at Google, according toa new report from Business Insiderciting sources within the company.
A different kind of AR glasses, Iris was more than just an ambitious undertaking from Google. Over several years, Google nurtured the project, continuing its apparent ambition to take part in the AR wearables market with its own hardware. Google also strengthened its talent through acquisitions as part of its strategic AR push, most notably withthe 2020 purchase of North, a Canadian firm that specializes in AR eyewear. The Focals, North’s original device, was eerily similar to an early iteration of Iris. Later on, Google even demoed Iris and what was possible with its cutting-edge translation capabilities:
With the discontinuation of the Iris project, Google significantly changed its AR approach. The company is now reportedly concentrating its efforts on establishing an AR software platform that it hopes to license to other manufacturers rather than producing hardware.
The core of this new strategy is the internal prototyping platform “Betty,” with Google purportedly hoping to become something like “Android for AR,” overseeing a platform that other companies would develop hardware for and license Google’s tech. That said, some employees still express hope that Google may eventually bring back the Iris spectacles, so perhaps the dream of a proper Glass successor isn’t dead for good.
