Latest news with #ProjectStarline
The Verge
2 days ago
- Business
- The Verge
Google Beam hands-on exclusive: a futuristic upgrade to conference calls
Google's Project Starline has been in the works for the last few years and is now heading out commercially as Google Beam and it's Google's way to make virtual meetings suck less. Beam uses a light field display and six cameras to render a volumetric, real-time 3D version of the person on the other end of a videocall. There's no headset, no weird glasses. Just a chunky display, a Chrome OS-powered compute puck the size of a DVD player, and a bespoke AI model working with Google Cloud in the background to stitch it all together. The Verge's Alex Heath got an exclusive hands-on.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
When Google cofounder Larry Page predicted in 2000: 'AI would be the ultimate version of Google'
Google's commitment to artificial intelligence (AI) dates back much further than many may realise. While CEO Sundar Pichai has repeatedly described Google as an 'AI-first' company since 2016, the concept was first outlined by co-founder Larry Page in 2000. At the time, with Google still in its early stages, Page predicted that AI will eventually become the ultimate version of the search engine. Page talked about Google being an AI company when the company was merely two years old. "Artificial intelligence would be the ultimate version of Google," he said, adding, "It would understand, you know, exactly what you wanted. And it would give you the right thing." "And that's obviously artificial intelligence, you know. It would be able to answer any question, basically, because almost everything is on the web, right?," Page explained (via Business Insider). Google operated about 6000 computers in the year 2000 Page stated that Google operated approximately 6,000 computers to maintain around 100 copies of the web. Describing the scale of computation and data storage, Page remarked, "A lot of computation, a lot of data that didn't used to be available." He further emphasised the challenge involved, noting, "From an engineering scientific standpoint, building things to make use of this is a really interesting intellectual exercise. So I expected to be doing that for a while." Key announcements from Google I/O 2025 At this year's Google's annual I/O developer conference, the company showcased the company's intensified focus on AI, unveiling significant AI updates across its product ecosystem. Key announcements included smarter Gemini 2.5 models (Pro with "Deep Think" and an improved Flash), the launch of Google Beam (formerly Project Starline) for 3D video conferencing, and a new $250/month AI Ultra subscription for advanced features. Google also revealed a complete AI overhaul for Search, introduced Android XR for smart glasses (Project Aura), and brought AI-powered Smart Replies to Gmail and real-time translation to Google Meet. Enhancements to the AI Agent (Project Mariner), the universal AI assistant (Project Astra), and more realistic AI video (Veo 3) and image (Imagen 4) generation models underscored Google's AI-first future. Google I/O 2025: AI Ultra tier, AI Mode on Search and more AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
CNET
26-05-2025
- CNET
Google Beam Brings More Natural Video Conversations Within Reach
At Google I/O 2025, most of the hands-on demos were dedicated to Gemini AI and the exciting Android XR glasses. But tucked in a corner of the grounds around the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, CA, was a set of windowless rooms showing off one of the company's most promising innovations: Google Beam. In one of those rooms, I had a video chat where my conversation partner literally popped off the screen in 3D. Google Beam is the new name for Project Starline, which the company has been working on for years. The renaming was announced during the Google I/O keynote to coincide with the news that HP would be producing Beam units for sale by the end of the year. While Google didn't share many details, these commercial and enterprise products will run roughly the same technology as what I got to experience, though they'll look more like conventional TVs than prototype devices. I'd gotten a preview of then-Project Starline at the Code Conference in October 2023, and the hardware at the Google I/O 2025 demo was identical: a 65-inch display with six cameras surrounding it mounted in pairs on the top and both sides. (HP's commercial devices will have its six cameras embedded in the bezels.) The AI models now are running in Google Cloud, which the Beam team has refined to improve the quality of chats people have with it. "Overall people report feeling a strong sense of connection when taking meetings on Google Beam," said Patrick Seybold, head of communications for Google Beam. The team has been testing its prototype devices internally across buildings and with external partners like Salesforce. David Lumb/CNET What it's like to chat with Google Beam The improvements made were subtle, but noticeable compared to what I remember from two years ago. The Google employee I chatted with (who was in front of a similar Beam setup in a distant office building) popped out of the screen, with more detail on their face and hair. It felt far more like they were in the room with me than if I was on a standard Zoom-style video call. I found myself gesturing more, smiling wider and leaning forward in my chair. That tracks with Google's years of research on people's behavior since first announcing Starline at Google I/O 2021. As the company has detailed in prior blog posts and SIGGRAPH white papers, folks chatting with Starline (now called Beam) feel it results in "more natural" conversations, though they have a hard time pinning down why. This suggests Beam preserves a lot of subconscious behaviors people don't realize they're making in real-life chats that don't get across in a Zoom call. I certainly felt this in my Beam chat: The 3D nature let me pick up on when my conversation partner was shifting away or toward me and I picked up on more gestures and body language that conveyed tells that enable the typical ebb and flow of an IRL exchange. I didn't find myself talking over the other person, nor did they interrupt me. Some of this is a result of tech decisions -- because, yes, I'm definitely more engaged in conversation with someone on a 65-inch display than a 2-inch Zoom window on my monitor. There's also the fact that every Beam conversation seems to be in an antiseptic room and a plain background, without a lot of books and tchotchkes littered around to distract me. Beam's six cameras also track my face and present my conversation partner at eye level, making it feel like I'm having a face-to-face chat with true eye contact. "There are many ingredients involved to create the feeling of presence and connection that the Google Beam experience facilitates," said Seybold. "The 3D effect, the eye contact, the natural scale, and other key elements all play a role in facilitating that feeling of immersion." In my chat at Google I/O, the Beam team member pulled a similar stunt as my conversation partner had when I tried out Starline in 2023: holding out an apple for me to reach for. It had a similar effect, like I was just too far away to catch it if it fell. But I also held up my hands for a double high five which, again, felt like I was inches away from performing. And I remember some of the things we talked about even now, which is more than I can say of some Zoom video chats I had earlier this week. "We've run studies in these workplace environments that show people tend to be more attentive and remember more of their conversations when meeting on Google Beam," Seybold said. "We've even run studies and found that people over the course of multiple back-to-back meetings exhibit less meeting fatigue with Google Beam relative to typical video conferencing." Google hasn't given any details on how much Beam products will cost, though we may find out when HP shares more information about its Beam offerings at Infocomm in a few weeks. Google has confirmed that it's lined up customers from Deloitte, Salesforce and Citadel, and referred to HP's products as bringing Beam devices "to the workplace," so it's likely that the first round of products will be aimed at enterprise -- which means, if I had to guess, it could be potentially priced out of the consumer market. While not all of us will need a 65-inch display Beam device to have immersive video chats, it's something I'm looking forward to coming to my own offices and eventually to household devices. When I walked out of the room at Google I/O, I was smiling -- something I can't say I've done after a conventional video chat.
Time of India
22-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Google Unveils 'Beam' in its Project Starline, with a Mission to Redefine Video Communications.
Live Events Looking at the AI- First Video communication tool, through the lens of India: In a strong-willed leap forward for AI- driven communication, Google has unveiled 'Google Beam'- a brand-new AI-powered video communication platform, as part of their ' Project Starline '. The announcement points to a pivotal evolution of 'Project Starline', placing Google at the spear of immersive digital interaction, insinuating a deeper incorporation of AI across its product ecosystem. Beam revolutionised video communication, by transforming the traditional 2D video streams into immersive 3D communication experiences using ' an array of six cameras ' and ' state- of- the- art ' video models. The technology blends video streams to create an experience that is replicable to a natural face-to-face introduction of Beam aligns with Google's ambitions associated with the extended reality space, showcasing the emergence of a new standard for how people will connect virtually, with technologies like Beam making remote communications feels just as meaningful and memorable as those held in the introduction of Beam, Google has also showcased improvements in real-time speech translations for Google Meet. Google Meet now matches the user's voice, tone and even facial expressions while translating across different languages. These features are currently only available in English and Spanish, on Google AI Pro and Ultra accessible to subscribers in beta. This feature is expected to roll out to 'Workplace Business' customers soon with additional languages at these tools as an opportunity for India's rapidly digitising economy, tools like Google Beam could have pivotal influence. Considering the advancements, they could potentially garner in sectors such as online education, Telehealth, and remote work, where immersive video communications could enhance effectiveness and the country moves forward, accelerating digitally, tools like Beam could eliminate connectivity gaps, allowing richer and more human-like interactions across the nation, and by extension, the globe. This would be a leap of faith, towards making advanced communication technology of this kind accessible to everyone.
Techday NZ
22-05-2025
- Business
- Techday NZ
Google reveals sweeping AI upgrades for Gemini & launches new Beam
Google has unveiled developments in artificial intelligence (AI) across its Gemini platform alongside expansions to products such as Search, Workspace, and video communications. Google Chief Executive Sundar Pichai delivered a wide-ranging update highlighting the company's swift pace of AI advancement, referencing significant growth metrics, new solutions, and an emphasis on making AI more accessible. Pichai noted how the typical lead-up to annual events has changed: "Normally, you wouldn't have heard much from us in the weeks leading up to I/O, because we'd be saving up our best models for the stage. But in our Gemini era, we're just as likely to ship our most intelligent model on a Tuesday in March, or announce a really cool breakthrough like AlphaEvolve a week before." He explained the company's objective: "We want to get our best models into your hands and our products ASAP. And so we're shipping faster than ever." The introduction of the seventh-generation Tensor Processing Unit (TPU), called Ironwood, was highlighted as part of Google's infrastructure advancements, with Pichai noting, "Our seventh-generation TPU, Ironwood, is the first designed specifically to power thinking and inferential AI workloads at scale. It delivers 10 times the performance over the previous generation, and packs an incredible 42.5 exaflops compute per pod — just amazing." Pichai described how improvements in infrastructure have contributed to lowering model costs while maintaining performance: "Our infrastructure strength, down to the TPU, is what helps us deliver dramatically faster models, even as model prices are coming down significantly. Over and over, we've been able to deliver the best models at the most effective price point. Not only is Google leading the Pareto Frontier, we've fundamentally shifted the frontier itself." The company has reported a rapid increase in the adoption of its AI technology. "This time last year, we were processing 9.7 trillion tokens a month across our products and APIs. Now, we're processing over 480 trillion — that's 50 times more. Over 7 million developers are building with Gemini, five times more than this time last year, and Gemini usage on Vertex AI is up 40 times. The Gemini app now has over 400 million monthly active users. We are seeing strong growth and engagement particularly with the 2.5 series of models. For those using 2.5 Pro in the Gemini app, usage has gone up 45%," Pichai stated. On bringing research into tangible application, Pichai said, "What all this progress means is that we're in a new phase of the AI platform shift. Where decades of research are now becoming reality for people, businesses and communities all over the world." The progression of Project Starline was addressed, now rebranded as Google Beam. "We debuted Project Starline, our breakthrough 3D video technology, at I/O a few years back. The goal was to create a feeling of being in the same room as someone, even if you were far apart," said Pichai. He continued, "We've continued to make technical advances. Today we're ready to introduce the next chapter: Google Beam, a new AI-first video communications platform. Beam uses a new state-of-the-art video model to transform 2D video streams into a realistic 3D experience, using an array of six cameras and AI to merge video streams together and render you on a 3D lightfield display. It has near perfect head tracking, down to the millimeter, and at 60 frames per second, all in real-time. The result is a much more natural and deeply immersive conversational experience. In collaboration with HP, the first Google Beam devices will be available for early customers later this year." Pichai also highlighted speech translation advances in Google Meet, allowing for highly natural, cross-lingual communication: "In near real time, it can match the speaker's voice and tone, and even their expressions — bringing us closer to natural and free-flowing conversation across languages. Translation in English and Spanish is rolling out to Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers in beta, with more languages coming in the next few weeks. This will come to Workspace business customers for early testing this year." Gemini Live has added Project Astra's camera and screen-sharing features, broadening real-world applications. "People are using it in interesting ways, from interview preparation to marathon training. This feature is already available to all Android users and rolling out to iOS users starting today," Pichai said. Discussing AI agents, Pichai presented developments from Project Mariner, now enabling new multitasking and learning techniques: "We think of agents as systems that combine the intelligence of advanced AI models with access to tools, so they can take actions on your behalf and under your control." He provided detail on forthcoming availability, "We're bringing Project Mariner's computer use capabilities to developers via the Gemini API. Trusted testers like Automation Anywhere and UiPath are already starting to build with it, and it will be available more broadly this summer." Pichai mentioned the "teach and repeat" method, where agents can learn to perform similar future tasks after being shown once. He described collaboration efforts: "Like our open Agent2Agent Protocol, so that agents can talk to each other, or the Model Context Protocol introduced by Anthropic, so agents can access other services. And today, we're excited to announce that our Gemini API and SDK are now compatible with MCP tools." Agentic services will feature in the Gemini app, including a new mode for scheduling, filtering, and more, as Pichai explained: "For example, a new Agent Mode in the Gemini app will help you get even more done. If you're apartment hunting, it will help find listings that match your criteria on websites like Zillow, adjust filters and use MCP to access the listings and even schedule a tour for you. An experimental version of Agent Mode in the Gemini app will be coming soon to subscribers. And it's great for companies like Zillow, bringing in new customers and improving conversion rates." Pichai outlined his vision for personalisation in AI, referencing "personal context" features: "With your permission, Gemini models can use relevant personal context across your Google apps in a way that is private, transparent and fully under your control." He provided an example: "If your friend emails you for advice about a road trip that you've done in the past, Gemini can do the work of searching your past emails and files in Google Drive, such as itineraries you created in Google Docs, to suggest a response with specific details that are on point. It will match your typical greeting and capture your tone, style and even favorite word choices, all to generate a reply that's more relevant and sounds authentically like you. Personalized Smart Replies will be available for subscribers later this year." In relation to Google Search, Pichai discussed AI Overviews and the introduction of a comprehensive AI Mode. "Since launching last year, AI Overviews have scaled to over 1.5 billion users and are now in 200 countries and territories. As people use AI Overviews, we see they're happier with their results, and they search more often. In our biggest markets like the U.S. and India, AI Overviews are driving over 10% growth in the types of queries that show them, and this growth increases over time. It's one of the most successful launches in Search in the past decade." He elaborated on the new AI Mode: "For those who want an end-to-end AI Search experience, we're introducing an all-new AI Mode. It's a total reimagining of Search. With more advanced reasoning, you can ask AI Mode longer and more complex queries. In fact, early testers have been asking queries that are two to three times the length of traditional searches, and you can go further with follow-up questions. All of this is available as a new tab right in Search." Pichai expressed his perspective as a user: "I've been using it a lot, and it's completely changed how I use Search. And I'm excited to share that AI Mode is coming to everyone in the U.S., starting today. With our latest Gemini models our AI responses are at the quality and accuracy you've come to expect from Search, and are the fastest in the industry. And starting this week, Gemini 2.5, is coming to Search in the U.S., as well." The Gemini 2.5 model series received updates, with Pichai stating, "Our powerful and most efficient workhorse model, Gemini 2.5 Flash, has been incredibly popular with developers who love its speed and low cost. And the new 2.5 Flash is better in nearly every dimension — improving across key benchmarks for reasoning, multimodality, code and long context. It's second only to 2.5 Pro on the LMArena leaderboard." He announced new features: "We're making 2.5 Pro even better by introducing an enhanced reasoning mode we're calling Deep Think. It uses our latest cutting-edge research in thinking and reasoning, including parallel thinking techniques." Gemini app enhancements include the ability to connect with Google Drive and Gmail to support personalised research, create multimedia content through Canvas, and generate dynamic output such as infographics, quizzes, and podcasts in multiple languages. Pichai indicated, "We're making Deep Research more personal, allowing you to upload your own files and soon connect to Google Drive and Gmail, enhancing its ability to generate custom research reports. We're also integrating it with Canvas, enabling the creation of dynamic infographics, quizzes and even podcasts in numerous languages with a single click." For creative professionals, Google announced Veo 3 for video generation with native audio capability, alongside Imagen 4 for images. These models are intended to broaden creative possibilities, and a new tool called Flow aims to support filmmakers by extending short clips into cinematic scenes. Pichai closed his remarks by reflecting on the broader impact of AI advancements: "The opportunity with AI is truly as big as it gets. And it will be up to this wave of developers, technology builders and problem solvers to make sure its benefits reach as many people as possible. And it's especially inspiring to think about the research we're working on today that will become the foundation of tomorrow's reality, from robotics to quantum, AlphaFold and Waymo." He added a personal anecdote: "This opportunity to improve lives is not something I take for granted. And a recent experience brought that home for me. I was in San Francisco with my parents. The first thing they wanted to do was ride in a Waymo, which I'm learning is becoming one of the city's top tourist attractions. I had taken Waymos before, but my father, who is in his 80s, was totally amazed; I saw the progress in a whole new light. It was a reminder of the incredible power of technology to inspire, to awe and to move us forward. And I can't wait to see the amazing things we'll build together next."
