In recent months, organizations around the globe have shifted to remote work to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. While some organizations have adopted short-term telecommuter policies, others have made long-term commitments to remote work. In lieu of traditional face-to-face interactions, virtual collaboration requires a host of solutions to enhance the overall experience. To assist remote teams, Google recently announced new collaboration capabilities to its wearable Glass Enterprise Edition 2.

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In 2019, Google announced the latest iteration of its Glass Enterprise Edition with the second edition of the wearable device. The unit touts a three microphones, a 640×360 optical display, an 8MP camera, a speaker, and more to assist with hands-free remote interactions. The company’s glasses paired with Google Meet enables remote workers to connect with others in real time. The hands-free capabilities allow team members to interact from afar while performing tasks.

In a press release, Google noted that it has continued its “dogfooding tradition” with Meet for Glass and initially tested the solution with employees at its own data centers. Once someone joins Meet, Meet for Glass allows others to see “exactly what the data technician is doing” and then collaborate in real-time. This in-house use case enabled the company’s data technicians to connect with other employees to analyze equipment, diagnose issues, and provide training for new hires.

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Historically, Google noted that “working remotely meant walking around equipment with a bulky webcam or laptop,” however, Google technicians can now use Glass to manage tasks “hands-free and focus on the task at hand.”

Google pointed out that data centers exist as one use case and detailed other roles across industries that could benefit from “heads-up and hands-free solutions.” This includes real estate agents delivering a “first-person virtual tour” or remotely performing home inspections on behalf of homebuyers or potential tenants.

Additionally, Google explained that field technicians could “connect with remote experts” to repair devices and manufacturers with increased demand could use on-site employees to assess and monitor “factory equipment with help from specialists worldwide.”

Workspace customers can now apply to join the Meet for Glass beta program for early access.

Other organizations are leveraging wearable technologies to assist employees and increase efficiency on the job. Earlier this month, we reported that Lockheed Martin is using Microsoft’s HoloLens 2 and mixed reality to build NASA’s Orion spacecraft. The use of mixed reality holographic instructions during construction has allowed employees to complete repetitive tasks, such as manual measurements, 90% faster, according to Microsoft.

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