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Project Starline is a novel experimental video communication method presently being developed by Google that allows the user to see a 3D model of the person they are communicating with. Google made a statement regarding the product at its 2021 I/O developer conference, stating that it will allow users to "talk naturally, gesture and make eye contact" with the help of machine learning, spatial audio, computer vision and real-time compression to create the 3D effect without the user wearing a typical virtual reality goggles. The goal is to make the user feel as though they are in the same room with the other user they are communicating with.
Project Starline had been in the work for more than five years prior to the official announcement by Google on 18th May, 2021. The technology at present is only available in a small number of Google's offices, but the company has big plans to begin collaborating with certain partners in the next year, particularly partners in the healthcare and media industries.
In the present implementation of Project Starline, it is a booth that the user sits in, facing a 65 in or 170 cm "light field display," surrounded by depth sensors, cameras, and lights. The setup help the user view another user on the display in 3D and also vice versa. Google made a commitment to "make this technology more affordable and accessible."
Through the years, Google has built products to help people feel more connected. They started this by simplifying email with Gmail, then made it easier to share that matters with Google Photos and be more productive with Google Meet. Although there have been progress in these and other communications tools over the years, they were in no way near to sitting down and talking face to face to one another.
To solve this challenge, they have been working for a few years on the Project Starline which is a technology project that combines advances in hardware and software to enable friends, families and coworkers to feel they are together, even though they may be physically apart.
To make this type of communication possible, they are applying research in computer vision, machine learning, spatial audio and real-time compression, and have also developed a breakthrough light field display system that can create a sense of volume and depth without any additional glasses or headsets.
The effect is such that one will feel a person is sitting just across from them, as though they are right there.
One of the unique selling proposition of this new communication is as soon as you sit down and start talking, the technology fades into the background, and you can focus on what's most important to you i.e. the person in front of you.
Google believes this is where person-to-person communication technology can and should rightly go, and in the meantime time, their goal is to make this technology more affordable and accessible, including bringing some of these technical advancements into their suite of communication products.
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