Google’s parent company Alphabet is testing delivering internet access to rural and remote communities by using beams of light, according to a new report.
The project is part of Google’s innovation lab called X. The internet delivery project, titled Taara, is delivering internet to rural communities in 13 countries so far including Australia, Kenya and Fiji, reports Reuters.
The company’s machine delivers the data via a laser beam, essentially becoming a fibre-optic internet without cables.
It could be used in more built-up areas, as it’s cheaper to send the beam from building to building than lay cable, says the report.
“We are trying to be one of the cheapest and the most affordable place where you would be able to get dollar per gigabyte to the end consumers,” the project’s lead Mahesh Krishnaswamy told Reuters.