Google has acquire Eyefluence, a startup which produces eye tech for use in virtual reality equipment. The amount of the purchase has yet to be disclosed.
So Google is continuing on its march to become the world’s leading company. And with Eyefluence it expands into the ever growing field of virtual reality. Perhaps this will help Google redo its failed Google Glass project.
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Eyefluence boasts that it has developed new tech which allows virtual reality to track a users eye movements. This is something which we have heard about for a long time now. Soon the mouse will go the way of dial up connections and dot matrix printers as people will be able to physically connect with their computers. Touch screens will also be unnecessary as a person will be able to move a cursor with the move of an eye.
And perhaps we will be able to open or close an application with a blink or a wink. Some people, however, might find this a scary proposal as it could lead to an AI like integration of the physical with the mechanical.
So are we going to all be turned into Borg in the future? Probably not, so relax.
https://youtu.be/Zn2Jg1Om-48
Founded in 2013 by David Stiehr and Jim Marggraff, Eyefluence has raised $21.6M in funding thus far from investors including Intel Capital, Jazz Venture Partners, Motorola Solutions Venture Capital and NHN Investment.
Eyefluence stated in a blog post:
“Today, we are excited to announce that the Eyefluence team is joining Google! With our forces combined, we will continue to advance eye-interaction technology to expand human potential and empathy on an even larger scale. We look forward to the life-changing innovations we’ll create together!”
So this is what Google is getting according to Eyefluence itself:
“A multidisciplinary team of world-class experts in UX design, optics, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, physics, math, computer vision, computer science, artificial intelligence, and machine learning. Eyefluence is, “united by a passion for creating the best possible experiences in VR, AR, and MR realms [and is] dedicated to solving the most complex technical challenges related to true eye-interaction for HMDs.”
“Eyefluence’s technology is based on an IP portfolio with more than 30 patents granted or pending. The company is engaged in development with Fortune 100 and other leading and emerging companies and device manufacturers that are working to accelerate the wide adoption of smart glasses, including AR, VR and MR headsets, for enterprise, industrial, government, and consumer applications.”
So whatever Google has payed for Eyefluence, it is probably getting its money’s worth.