Google Fiber has announced the launch of GFiber Labs, a new hub dedicated to innovating internet technology and services with specific attention on boosting speed to the home as well as "reliability, service and access."
GFiber will use its existing facility on the Google campus in Mountainview, California that houses lab equipment and materials for tests involving its data centers and network. But the GFiber Labs inititiative will also conduct network testing outside of that environment in real markets to augment the products and services it's working on in the lab, said John Keib, VP of technology, operations and product.
Keib told Fierce that Google Fiber plans to partner with other companies both in the lab and the field.
Google Fiber will be looking at a “wide array” of companies, some of which it has already worked with and some of which will be new. That will include traditional networking companies, like those involved in the ONT space and wireless vendors. And GFiber Labs will also tap strategic vendors “as it relates to anything with service side,” Keib said, as well as consumer electronic device manufacturers and content delivery companies.
GFiber will be able to disclose the names of some of those companies “relatively soon.”
The work at GFiber Labs will mainly revolve around augmenting home internet speeds. This will incorporate development in Wi-Fi 7 and 8 to make home networks multi-gig in preparation for emerging technologies like 3D, Augmented VR and 16K video. Additionally, the lab will work on fiber networking within the home, “which is a little bit different than maybe how customers do it today with Ethernet wiring throughout their home, or even just relying on wireless itself,” Keib said.
The lab will also work on technologies like photonics and millimeter wave wireless for faster speeds. “And on top of that, because we're pushing the boundaries on speed pretty far, we're also keeping an eye on the processing power of even things like computers and devices in the home,” he added.
GFiber Labs will bring these emerging technologies to early adopters to test in the field. The company is already doing a bit of this. It rolled out 20-gig service to the University of Missouri - Kansas City last year, and is testing it with consumers today. Earlier this year, Google Fiber announced it was accepting candidates to test its nascent 20-gig product in Austin, Huntsville, Raleigh-Durham and Salt Lake City.
Keib said GFiber Labs is open to having a “brainstorming session” with any other organizations that want to get involved with testing.
As of now there is no scheduled goal for getting 20 Gbps speeds to customer homes, but Keib said as part of GFiber Labs the company will define that timeline more clearly. “We have a lot of conviction for 20 Gig,” he added. “And we see a really strong roadmap for that.”
UPDATE: Google Fiber reached out to Fierce after publication to clarify GFiber Labs is also working on improving "reliability, service and access," in addition to boosting home internet speeds.