This Is Microsoft's Gorgeous New Nest Competitor

Microsoft's vision for the smart home is finally taking shape. Following a demonstration of how its Cortana virtual assistant would work in cars and living rooms last May, the company just revealed it's working on a smart thermostat called GLAS. The device was built by Johnson Controls and is powered by Microsoft technologies like its Azure cloud platform, Cortana voice helper and Windows IoT core, a version of Windows 10 that's optimized for smaller devices. The company unveiled GLAS in a new YouTube video that offers a brief overview of what it's up to. Contrasted with rivals like the Nest Learning Thermostat and Honeywell Lyric, both of which have round shapes that resemble more traditional thermostats, GLAS appears to be a sleek, transparent touchscreen mounted on a wall.