Google Glass may not have panned out quite the way Google hoped when it first launched the smart glasses at its I/O conference in April 2012. But it’s finding new life in Google’s Glass at Work program, which partners with a variety of startups and investors who are using Google Glass in new and innovative ways.
“It’s a big market today, and it will be an even bigger one in the future,” said Brian Ballard, founder and chief executive officer at Upskill, of the new uses for Google Glass. Upskill’s clients using the technology include Boeing, GE, Intel, Microsoft, and Vuzix.
Google Glass has also found a home in digital healthcare. For San Francisco startup Augmedix, Google Glass is essential. Augmedix CEO Ian Shakil said the company will deploy almost 1,000 Google Glass devices as part of Augmedix’s services, which involve helping doctors keep track of patient information using a combination of remote scribes and data captured using the smart glasses.
Augmedix currently partners with 12 hospitals, including Dignity Health, Sutter Health, and TriHealth. Doctors at these hospitals wear the glasses while meeting with patients, transmitting video to remote scribes, who take notes. In this way, doctors are freed up to spend more time directly interacting with patients and forming important relationships.
Read more about Augmedix’s use of Google Glass here.