Newsletter 
Google is apparently in a new hiring spree for its VR (virtual reality) and AR (augmented reality) projects. Interestingly enough, over the past 30 days, the company’s new job listings have been searching for employees with hardware expertise, suggesting that the Google is now looking to push forward multiple VR and AR projects besides Google Daydream.
Back in 2016, around the time Google Daydream was getting ready for its official debut, Google began searching for new employees for jobs mostly focused on software development. This made sense considering the fact that Google Daydream is largely a software platform for smartphones, allowing mobile devices to be used as virtual reality engines when coupled with the Daydream View headset. In other words, Google Daydream, or rather the Daydream View HMD is not a dedicated, stand-alone VR device. However, there have been rumors indicating that Google’s next move will be to create a stand-alone VR platform which would not require a smartphone to render graphics. This endeavor would likely require more employees with hardware expertise, and interestingly enough, Google’s VR / AR Team is now hiring new personnel with experience in hardware development. Specifically, the company is now searching for an Engineering Project Specialist able to “drive multiple hardware projects simultaneously from prototype to mass production”, an Electrical Hardware Engineer For Consumer Hardware Platforms with “Experience supporting high volume overseas manufacturing builds”, as well as an Optical Lab Technician who will be “responsible for the operations and maintenance of Hardware Engineering laboratories”. Furthermore, Google is looking to hire a System Power and Performance Architect, along with a Thermal Technician for Daydream VR.
Needless to say, now that Google has entered the hardware game with the introduction of the Google Pixel smartphones and the Google Home smart speaker, the company will probably continue to expand its teams and welcome new talent with hardware expertise in order to design new products. But as far as the virtual reality branch is concerned, it should be underlined that the job listing doesn’t confirm Google’s alleged intentions to develop a stand-alone VR or AR headset, but it does suggest that the company is looking for ways to expand its VR/AR team in order to create new hardware, and push multiple projects into mass production at the same time. Only time will tell what type of new VR / AR hardware we can expect from the company in the future.