Google AR Shopping Tech: Alphabet Inc. Partners With BMW, Gap

Google is working to create new shopping experiences for consumers. The company announced retail partnerships with BMW and Gap Inc. to use its augmented reality (AR) platform Project Tango and work towards creating a shopping experience in which shoppers do not need to be physically present at the retail outlet, but they can choose products as if they were. "We see a lot of use of this technology in retail, for measuring your garage or buying big-ticket items like kitchens for example," Eric Johnsen, business development executive, augmented reality at Google, spoke at CES in Las Vegas on Wednesday, where the deals were announced. Tango uses computer vision comprising of technologies such as 3D mapping, motion-tracking and AR instead of GPS to help devices sense their environments. Google's technology venture will use cameras and sensors in smartphone to create digital images in physical spaces, the best example of which is the AR game Pokémon Go.