Google will be ending sales of its current Glass hardware next week as part of a reorganization of the team responsible for the company’s face computer. The Glass team has been spun out of the Google X skunkworks division, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.
The Glass team will still be led by Ivy Ross, but will report to Nest CEO Tony Fadell, in the first expansion of Fadell’s authority since Google bought Nest last year for $3.2 billion. According to the report, the current Google Glass Explorer Edition hardware will only be available to business customers after January 19, though Google is reportedly working on a new version of Glass for release later this year.
The new hardware will have to rehabilitate Glass’s image. The device has been subjected to skepticism and derision, along with outright bans from a number of businesses. The group certainly has a tough road ahead, but Fadell said that the team will be integrating past feedback about Glass into upcoming projects.
“Early Glass efforts have broken ground and allowed us to learn what’s important to consumers and enterprises alike,” Fadell told The Verge. “I’m excited to be working with Ivy to provide direction and support as she leads the team and we work together to integrate those learnings into future products. I remain fully committed to Nest and am equally excited about our work there, which continues to accelerate.”
Fadell’s guidance will likely be a boost to the Glass team. At Apple, he was responsible for the iPod, which went on to be one of the company’s most successful products. If Google can bring the same mojo to Glass, the face computer could escape its bad rap.
