In recent weeks, we’ve been reading a lot about so-called Zoom Fatigue – in the home office between kids, sofa and continuous calls, we’re slowly getting tired of the video conferences that make remote work and the New Working possible in the first place. Google therefore wants to give this type of communication new momentum and has presented the future of video communication at their developer conference Google I/O.
The “Starline” project uses artificial intelligence to revolutionize video conversations for all time. The large screen, which quickly resembles a window or a mirror, uses dozens of cameras, sensors and algorithms to not only make the interlocutors appear in the right light, but to project them into the room in a particularly realistic, vivid and almost tangible way.
Several years passed before they were ready to present the new development at the conference. As part of their vision to make the Internet ever more personal, interactive and lifelike, a team at Google has been working hard to develop the next level of Google Meet, beating out competitors like WebEx and Zoom.
Starline’s video booth is the result of this research and is based on what is known as hyper-telepresence. As the video shows, this development brings the interlocutor almost tangibly into the booth and, through brilliant resolution and lifelike interactions, puts a stop to impersonal video conferencing.
Even reporters, such as a journalist from WIRED magazine who was allowed to test the software, are enthusiastic. Sitting at the right angle, it would be quite a wild development, with a lot of potential.
In the next few days, Facebook and co are holding developer conferences and it remains to be seen what they will follow up with to trump hyper-telepresence.
Post image and video: Google
