Google's 'moonshot factory' creates new internet with fingernail-sized chip that fires data around the world using light beams

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.

"We believe this is the first time silicon photonics chips have transmitted such high-capacity data outdoors at this distance," Mahesh Krishnaswamy, the general manager of Taara, said in a statement.

The researchers at X, which is Google's research and development arm, hope Taara can deliver fiber-like internet speeds to regions that are difficult to access with traditional fiber-optic cables. These traditional cables are typically buried deep underground, making them impractical for remote areas or challenging terrains, such as mountains and forests. This, however, isn't a problem for Taara.

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Similarly, because the light frequencies Taara uses don't overlap with radio frequency bands like 5G, Taara doesn't have to contend with other signals taking up bandwidth.

He added that the goal was to make high-speed connectivity cheaper and easier to deploy by reducing the size and cost of the infrastructure, specifically by creating a mesh network of multiple Taara devices connected together.

These devices could then exchange data directly, providing high-speed, easily-scalable coverage wherever Taara nodes exist.

"Using chips deployed in a global mesh network, we see opportunities to bring high-speed internet to underserved regions, rethink the way data centers are built and operated, enable faster, create safer communication for autonomous vehicles, and so much more."

Data beamed at light speed

Fiber-optic cables contain tiny plastic or glass strands that transmit data as pulses of light. These are extremely effective at carrying high-speed data over long distances — far more so than older, copper-based cables, which carry data as slower electrical signals that are more prone to interference.

Taara also sends data as optical signals; however, it avoids the need for underground cables and networks that require physical maintenance. This means it can be installed "in hours instead of the days, months, or even years it can take to lay fiber," Krishnaswamy said.

The Taara chip is actually a newer, smaller version of an existing Google X invention called Taara Lightbridge, which is about the size of a traffic light.

Lightbridge featured a physical housing and mechanisms consisting of "mirrors, sensors, precision optics, and smart software" to align light beams to where they need to be. When two beams lock onto each other, they create a secure link capable of transmitting data up to speeds of 20 Gbps up to distances of 12.4 miles (20 km).

Krishnaswamy said the Taara chip will be available in 2026 in X's next product — which the company has not disclosed. In the meantime, Google's research arm has invited researchers and tinkerers to get in touch to explore potential applications.