Google shutting down Glass Explorer program

Google ended its Glass Explorer program and said in an official blog post that Google Glass project will undergo significant changes under the leadership of Tony Fadell. It means that Glass project will be moving from experimental Google X group and will become a separate unit under the chairmanship of Fadell.

Google will officially put an end to the program on January 19 which will see current Google Glass removed from the market and will not be sold to individuals. But, according to WSJ, developers and organizations who are interested in purchasing Google Glass to test out their applications or software can go through an application process to apply for it.

Tony Fadell, who is well known for his work as a lead in iPod team at Apple, joined Google when Google acquired smart thermostat maker Nest. Tony Fadell was the CEO of Nest at the time of acquisition. Currently, Nest development is being looked by Ivy Ross who will continue to work as the head of Glass development and will remain under Fadell authority.

Google said in its official blog post

As part of this transition, we’re closing the Explorer Program so we can focus on what’s coming next. January 19 will be the last day to get the Glass Explorer Edition. In the meantime, we’re continuing to build for the future, and you’ll start to see future versions of Glass when they’re ready. (For now, no peeking.)

It looks like the next version of Glass will feature significant changes compared to the previous version. Although it is not sure what type of changes Google will bring to the next version of Glass. It is still a very confusing move made by Google as to why they stopped selling Glass in market if it was just in experimental stages. But, the future is looking bring for Google Glass.