Google has employed a key architect of Microsoft’s Hololens combined actuality glasses to work on its personal “Challenge Iris” augmented actuality glasses mission.
The rent, first reported by Highway to VR‘s Scott Hayden, befell in November. That’s roughly the identical time that Google determined to centralize its AR/VR improvement efforts underneath the roof of Google Labs (as reported by TechCrunch’s Sarah Perez). Kress’s title is Director of XR (combined actuality) Engineering at Google Labs. The group is reportedly led by Clay Bavor, who stories on to Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai.
The Verge‘s Alex Heath later reported that Google is engaged on a goggle-like combined actuality headset (underneath the codename Challenge Iris) that might come to market in 2024.
At Microsoft, Kress labored on augmented actuality and combined actuality optical architectures (shows, sensors, and imaging), optical subsystems, and on the commercial design and person interface of the Hololens. He additionally labored on the model of Hololens that Microsoft produced for the Military’s IVAS mission.
With Meta, Apple, Fb, and others now furiously constructing the glasses that would be the major gateway to the metaverse, a fierce struggle for the most effective expertise has ensued. On this case Microsoft seems to be the loser.
Kress ought to really feel at house in Mountain View. Earlier than he went to Microsoft in 2015 he was one of many principal architects of the (ill-fated) Google Glass good glasses.
Google didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
