Google X has revealed the Taara chip, the latest development in its quest to harness the power of light for inexpensive, cable-free, high-speed internet.
This "fingernail-sized" chip uses software-controlled light emitters to steer data-encoded light beams between two points. In tests, researchers successfully transmitted data at 10 gigabits per second (Gbps) over 0.6 miles (1 kilometer) outdoors using two Taara chips.
