The return of Google Glass? Search giant partners with Magic Leap for secret project

Unity is strength ? Google and Magic Leap have announced a new strategic partnership in the field of augmented reality.

However, their respective products experienced a dismal failure in the 2010s. First launched in the field of augmented reality glasses, the Mountain View firm quickly understood that its Google Glass would not achieve the expected success, and preferred market for professionals.

For its part, Magic Leap was among the most promising start-ups of the decade. Arousing immense enthusiasm, allowing it to raise billions of dollars, it unfortunately failed to win over enough users. A disappointment which can be explained by several factors, such as not sufficiently advanced technology, a bulky headset, limited applications and a poorly defined marketing strategy.

A step into mixed reality

Both companies want to make a clean sweep of the past. Together, they aim to promote “ the XR ecosystem (editor’s note: mixed reality) thanks to unique and innovative product offerings », Indicates Magic Leap in a press release. A market today blithely dominated by Meta with the Meta Quest 3, and the newcomer Apple, whose Vision Pro has been available since February in the United States.

The partnership aims to combine Magic Leap’s expertise in optics and device manufacturing with Google’s technology platforms. The start-up has invested heavily in research in recent years.

Most companies interested in this type of glasses have found that the optical components are particularly difficult to develop and expensive to produce, especially for these particularly light devices. To see if this new collaboration succeeds in solving this problem.

AI, again and again

In an interview given to ReutersMagic Leap’s chief technology officer, Julie Larson-Green, said she’s excited to work on “ interesting AI links » with augmented reality. During its I/O conference held in mid-May, Google unveiled a new prototype of augmented reality glasses.

The web giant also presented the Astra project, an AI assistant capable of observing its surroundings and interacting with humans. A technology that is reminiscent of the latest innovations in Ray-Ban Stories 2: Meta glasses have been equipped with AI for several weeks.

If the two companies remain very discreet about what they wish to develop, this statement suggests the development of augmented reality glasses, possibly powered by AI. This type of product is considered the descendant of the smartphone by certain players in Silicon Valley.

Sources: Reuters, The Verge, Magic Leap