A simple pair of sunglasses that projects holographic icons. A smartwatch that has a digital screen but analog hands. A temporary tattoo that, when applied to your skin, transforms your body into a living touchpad. A virtual reality controller that lets you pick up objects in digital worlds and feel their weight as you swing them around. Those are some of the projects Google has quietly been developing or funding, according to white papers and demo videos, in an effort to create the next generation of wearable technology devices.

The eyewear and smartwatch projects come from the search giant's Interaction Lab, an initiative aimed at intertwining digital and physical experiences. It's part of Google Research, an arm of the search giant with roots in academia that focuses on technical breakthroughs. The Interaction Lab was created within Google's hardware division in 2015, before it was spun out to join the company's research arm about two years ago, according to the resume of Alex Olwal, the lab's leader. Olwal, a senior Google researcher, previously worked at X, the company's self-described moonshot factory, and ATAP, Google's experimental hardware branch.

The goal of the Interaction Lab is to expand Google's "capabilities for rapid hardware prototyping of wearable concepts and interface technology," Olwal writes. Its initiatives appear to be more science experiment than product roadmap, with the likely goal of proving ideas rather than competing with the Apple Watch or Snapchat Spectacles. But taken together, they provide a glimpse at Google's ambitions for wearable tech.

The other projects were collaborations with researchers from universities around the world. At least two of them -- the VR controller and smart tattoos -- were partly funded through Google Faculty Research Awards, which support academic work related to computer science and engineering. The efforts highlight Google's close ties with the academic community, a bridge to the company's beginnings as a Stanford University grad school project by co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin that grew into a global behemoth with deep hooks into our lives.

Google and Olwal confirmed the company had developed or funded the projects.The experiments could play a critical role in coming years as tech giants open up a new battlefront in wearable tech. Many in the industry see it as the next major computing platform after smartphones. Google, Apple, Amazon, Samsung and Facebook -- through its virtual reality subsidiary Oculus -- have all released wearables, including watches, rings, earbuds and jean jackets. Almost 370 million wearable devices will be [url]shipped [/url=https://justgospel.neocities.org/links.html]this year, forecasts the research firm IDC, growing to more than 525 million in two years.

It isn't just about selling hardware. Getting sensor packed-devices onto consumers could mean a treasure trove of data beyond what people produce on their phones or at their desks. It's an especially valuable haul for Google, which makes more than $160 billion a year, mostly through targeted ads that are informed by the personal data of people who use its services. The gadgets also create inroads to lucrative new businesses for tech giants, like health and fitness, though lawmakers and regulators have privacy concerns about Silicon Valley's ever-expanding scope.

Google has been trying to get a toehold in wearables for years but hasn't quite found the spot. In 2012, the company unveiled Silicon Valley's most notorious foray into wearable technology: Google Glass eyewear. The device was maligned from the start and ultimately flopped. Google has also developed an operating system specifically for smartwatches and other devices, called Wear OS, though it's earned little more than a niche following.

Recently, however, the company has made a more determined push. Last month, it acquired North, a Canadian company that makes smart glasses called Focals, reportedly for $180 million. Google last year announced a $2.1 billion deal to acquire Fitbit, the struggling fitness tracker pioneer, in an attempt to bolster Google's hardware operation. The buyout has sparked alarm among critics worried about Google's ability to strong-arm its way into new industries and buy the health data of millions of people.