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Griffin Theatre Company , in Sydney’s bustling King Cross, has  produced new Australian plays and welcomed theater-goers since 1978. In March, like many performing arts organizations in Australia, Griffin had to close its doors—but it was determined to figure out a way for the show to go on.  With help from Google’s Creative Lab, Griffin Theatre Company created what their Artistic Director Declan Greene calls “theater, but not as you’ve seen it before.” Their piece, “Thirsty!” is an interactive techno-noir detective thriller, streamed on YouTube , which requires the audience to look for clues to assist the actors. We partnered with Declan and his team to develop #Poll, a Chrome Extension that asked viewers to participate and help shape the narrative inside the live comments stream. Across three nights in May, this “made for digital” performance was streamed live alongside equally experimental works from The Last Great Hunt and Sandpit . The Last Great Hunt’s show refash...

Through lockdown, many of us found that online tools have been a real lifeline. We’ve used them to find information and stay connected with our communities, support local businesses, teach our children and learn new skills ourselves. The same tools will be vital in helping countries recover more quickly and more sustainably.  That’s why Google is making a new pledge to help 10 million people and businesses in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) find jobs, digitize and grow over the next 18 months. Helping people learn new skills and find new jobs Long before the coronavirus, it was clear the jobs of the future would require a new set of digital skills , so we launched Grow with Google to help people learn new skills. We were blown away by the demand, and by what people went on to achieve, and in five years we’ve trained over 14 million people in EMEA and 70 million around the world. We’ve seen a tripling of demand for this training during lockdown. To hel...

My weekday routine is a balancing act. When I walk to the subway station at six in the morning, it's typically still dark outside. If I'm lucky, I'll snag a seat on the 5 train for the hour-long ride from the Bronx to Manhattan, but most days I'm standing—balancing with one hand on a pole and the other gripping my phone (usually working on something on Google Docs for class at the last minute). I'm headed to Yale in the fall! I’m one of the 54 students that make up  Google Code Next’s  first graduating class. Code Next, which started in 2015, is a free computer science education program that supports the next generation of Black and Latinx Tech leaders.  For four years after school and on the weekends, my classmates and I participated in a rigorous curriculum focused on computer science, problem solving and leadership—balancing that on top of our schoolwork. Our coaches from Google, who have lots of different backgrounds (from software engineering ...

With June coming to an end, it's time for another update in our Stadia Savepoint series. Here are the updates we’ve made this month to the Stadia platform: Touch controls on mobile Access touch controls within any game on your mobile device when a controller is not already connected. Expanded OnePlus compatibility Stadia is now compatible with OnePlus 5, OnePlus 6, and OnePlus 7 series mobile devices. More info here .  Per-device resolution settings Added the ability to set your preferred resolution on each device that you play Stadia on.  Experiments tab supports additional mobile devices Any Android phone that can install the Stadia app can play games using the Experiments tab in the settings menu.  Wireless Stadia Controller functionality on mobile We’re rolling out support for wireless play using the Stadia Controller on your mobile device. Just link your Stadia Controller to your phone by following the linking code shown on your screen. This month, playe...

For years I’ve wondered what it’s like behind the protected walls of a Google data center, and I’m not alone. In my job at Google, I spend my days working with developers. Our data centers are crucial to the work that they do, but most have never actually set foot inside a data center. And until recently, neither had I. I went on a mission to find answers to common questions like: Why are visits so tightly restricted? How secure is a Google data center? How do we meet regulatory requirements ? Here's what I found out. To keep our customers' data safe, we need to make sure the physical structure of the data center is absolutely secure. Each data center is protected with six layers of physical security designed to thwart unauthorized access. Watch the video above to follow my journey through these layers to the core of a data center, and read on to learn even more. “Least privilege” is the rule to live by There are two rules strictly enforced at all Google dat...

Employees increasingly demand privacy from the technology they use every day, but employers often see privacy in opposition to enterprise data security.  Since its debut in Android 5, the work profile has secured company data on personally-owned devices while preserving employee privacy. The separation of work and personal apps means IT gets full control over work apps and data, but has no visibility into personal apps. In Android 11, we’re bringing these privacy protections to company-owned devices as well, while providing IT the additional capabilities needed to manage company assets.  Employees demand privacy, even on company-owned devices In a recent survey by ESG research, 71 percent of employees said they expect all personal information to remain private on work devices. This resistance to traditional full device management creates challenges for IT organizations. In fact, employee concern about privacy is the top reason mobile devices remain unmanaged by IT, acco...

Warm evenings, backyard barbeques and sticky watermelon fingers mean two things for my family: Summer is finally here and the air conditioning is running. As the days get longer and temperatures rise, so does my energy bill.  Thankfully, Nest thermostats can help me save energy automatically. As of today, we’re announcing our Seasonal Savings feature will be available for free. Seasonal Savings isn’t the only Nest thermostat tool that works in the background to save energy, and sometimes money. Here are a few ways you can benefit from using the device without having to lift a finger.  1. Seasonal savings for all  For the first time, this summer we’re making Seasonal Savings available to all Nest thermostat owners for free. Previously, this feature was only available to customers of utilities with Seasonal Savings programs. It acts like a personal energy monitor, making small schedule tweaks to help you save energy and lower your bill, without you even noticing....

Today we're announcing that Google has acquired North, a pioneer in human computer interfaces and smart glasses. They've built a strong technology foundation, and we're excited to have North join us in our broader efforts to build helpful devices and services. From 10 blue links on a PC, to Maps on your mobile phone, to Google Nest Hub sharing a recipe in the kitchen, Google has always strived to be helpful to people in their daily lives. We’re building towards a future where helpfulness is all around you, where all your devices just work together and technology fades into the background. We call this ambient computing. North’s technical expertise will help as we continue to invest in our hardware efforts and ambient computing future. They'll join the Google team based in Kitchener-Waterloo, Canada—North’s hometown and an area with impressive tech talent. We're excited to welcome our new colleagues, and committed to the growing global tech community of Kitchen...

Dinosaurs may have ruled the Earth millions of years ago, but with augmented reality (AR), you can turn your home into “Jurassic World.” We're partnering with Universal Brand Development , Amblin Entertainment and Ludia to bring 10 dinosaurs from the franchise film, “Jurassic World”, to Google Search. Watch the massive T. Rex stomp in your living room or gaze up at a majestic Brachiosaurus as it towers above a neighborhood tree.  Search for a dinosaur on Google using a mobile device and tap “View in 3D” to rotate or zoom in and see it up close. You can then bring the dinosaur into your space with AR and adjust its size to understand how big it is in relation to the things around you. On Android devices, turn up your volume to hear the thudding footsteps and roars of each dinosaur.  “Jurassic World” dinosaurs that are viewable in AR include: Tyrannosaurus Rex, Velociraptor, Triceratops, Spinosaurus, Stegosaurus, Brachiosaurus, Ankylosaurus, Dilophosaurus, Pteranodon, and ...

During work hours, Leonard Ko collaborates with teams of engineers on Pixel phones. But he’s also known for a unique talent outside of tech: creating intricate sculptures out of fruit. It turns out fruit is just the latest medium for Leonard, who has been creating art for decades—and only recently decided to make his art edible.  Leonard Ko in his kitchen. Leonard has always been interested in expressing himself through art, and first worked on traditional Chinese paintings and oil paintings of landscapes. But eventually, his love of art translated into making art out of food.  At first, his prowess in the kitchen came through baked goods. “I liked to bake cakes and pipe them with buttercream and chocolate, but they are so sweet and unhealthy,” Leonard says. He changed his materials to avoid all the junk food. “I chose the art of fruit, since it’s natural and healthy,” he says. For the past three years, Leonard has been making his fruit sculptures every two ...

When shopping online, it can be daunting to find the right product, the best seller, or the best value. People often have many high quality choices available but aren't always aware of them all or don't have an easy way to access them. For many merchants, connecting with customers in a digital environment is still relatively new territory or a smaller part of their business. However, consumer preference for online shopping has increased dramatically, and it’s crucial that we help people find all the best options available and help merchants more easily connect with consumers online. Free listings on Google Search We recently announced that product results on the Google Shopping tab in the U.S. will consist primarily of free listings. This change has already produced a significant increase in user engagement, with both clicks and impressions up substantially for merchants, meaning consumers are finding more of the products they’re looking for from a wider range of optio...

The COVID-19 pandemic is impacting different communities in different ways. As cities and towns across the world respond with local policies and guidelines, the need for timely and authoritative local news and information is paramount. To help people navigate these complexities, we’re working across our news products to highlight the latest local guidance and surfacing more content from local news publishers so users can understand how the virus is affecting their community. Access the latest guidance in your community with Google News Finding consolidated and trustworthy COVID-19 guidance can be challenging. To help each community be prepared for what’s next, the Google News app is piloting a new feature in partnership with local news publishers. We will test this in a few geographic areas in the COVID-19 special section of the app, where users can view community reopening timelines, plus updates around business and school openings. They can also see the status of the local h...

As a former small business owner, I admire the many ways that an idea-turned-business can start: as a side hustle, a plan dreamed up at the kitchen table, or something passed down from generation to generation. But what I admire more is the ingenuity and resilience of small business owners who make it through all manner of crises, especially COVID-19. Seventy percent of small businesses say digital tools have been useful to them during the COVID crisis. Here are the stories of a few businesses from across the world who have made quick adjustments to keep their businesses running and how their digital presence helped them along the way: Watch Celsious' story Corinna and Theresa Williams are sisters who had an ambitious goal: to create a laundromat that made you actually  want to do your laundry. Together, they opened Celsious in Brooklyn, New York. Celsious is a light-filled laundromat with soaring ceilings, fast, eco-friendly machines, a barista-attended co...

We care about quality journalism because it helps create a more informed world. A strong fourth estate is important for society and democracy. But the truth is the business model for news that worked 40 years ago is facing enormous challenges today. The Internet has changed how we access information , providing new sources for everything from job listings to movie reviews. Given this vast marketplace of information and services, news businesses are having to reinvent themselves.  As a company with a mission focused on making information universally accessible, we are invested in helping journalism not only survive, but thrive. Alongside other companies, governments and civic society groups, we are playing our part in enabling a better future for news. And in light of some recent inaccurate claims about how Google works with the news industry and our value exchange with publishers, we felt it was important to set the record straight.  The value of news to Google is not ...

This year, as educators conducted class remotely, the equivalent of over 1,300 years of learning took place each day on Google Meet. With more than 140 million educators and students now using G Suite for Education worldwide to create, collaborate and communicate, many more schools and educators are using Meet to stay connected. We’re excited to share some Meet features that will be launching later this year to help educators improve moderation and engagement in remote or hybrid learning environments. Increasing control of your meetings As always, our first priority is keeping meetings safe and secure. New moderation features for G Suite for Education and G Suite Enterprise for Education users will give educators more control over how to run their virtual classes. All these features will be rolling out later this year. First off, we’re making it easier to manage meeting attendees. When someone asks to join a meeting (or “knocks”), they won’t be able to knock again afte...