Long car rides, typically of the road trip variety can often be exhausting in their monotony and isolation. We don’t often think of car rides as anything more than a means of reaching a destination. We become disassociated with the other people, cars and environments that are inevitably surrounding us.
GM’s new Windows of Opportunity project was begun to explore innovative ways to use interactive technologies to create a more interesting driving experience. The project, which was inspired by psychological studies that show passengers typically feel disconnected from their environments, uses smart glass to generate augmented reality digital layers over passing landscapes.
The company commissioned students from Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Israel to explore unique ways to use the smart glass technology. They were given full creative control to develop different applications regardless of whether they would be produced. The apps are primarily games but help to cultivate a stronger relationship between their users and their environments.