Google touts more inclusive camera with more accurate skin tones
Engineers are working on auto white balance, auto exposure algorithms and more images to diversify its skin tone dataset.
- I've been covering technology and mobile for 12 years, first as a telecommunications reporter and assistant editor at ZDNet in Australia, then as CNET's West Coast head of breaking news, and now in the Thought Leadership team.
Google wants to diversify its camera.
Google is working with industry experts to launch "a more accurate and inclusive camera ," the tech giant announced during Google I/O 2021 on Tuesday. Camera tools have not historically taken people of color into account, the company said.
"For people of color, photography has not always seen us as we want to be seen on Google products to make smartphone photography truly for everyone," said Sameer Samat, Google vice president of Android and Google Play.
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As part of the product inclusivity project, Google said its engineers partnered with image making experts who have used thousands of images to "diversify our image datasets" to create a "guidebook to capture skin tones," improve auto exposure algorithms and overhaul auto white balance accuracy.
"We're making auto white balance adjustments to algorithmically reduce stray light, to bring out natural brown tones and prevent over brightening and desaturation of darker skin tones," Samat said. "We're also able to reflect wavy hair types more accurately in selfies with new algorithms that better separate a person from the background in any image."
The improved camera system will be launched on Google Pixel this fall.