In a rare onstage appearance at Google I/O 2025, Google co-founder Sergey Brin candidly reflected on the failures of Google Glass and explained why he’s returned to the company’s frontlines to help drive AI development. Speaking alongside Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis in an interview moderated by Big Technology’s Alex Kantrowitz, Brin admitted he “made a lot of mistakes with Google Glass,” citing a lack of understanding around consumer electronics supply chains and pricing challenges. Still, he expressed renewed optimism, saying he believes strongly in the smart glasses form factor, especially with new partners helping overcome past hurdles.
Brin pointed to Google’s latest Android XR glasses, developed with DeepMind’s Project Astra, as an example of how far the tech has come — thanks in large part to generative AI. He also confirmed he’s now at the Mountain View office nearly every day, working on Gemini’s multimodal AI projects. “Anybody who’s a computer scientist should not be retired right now,” he said.