Wearable Tech Comes To Your Jeans

Google Glass may be on hiatus after struggling to create the must-have draw it had hoped, but now the search-engine giant has partnered with Levi´s for a new endeavour: Project Jacquard, a high-tech clothing initiative. The American denim label has developed state-of-the-art fabric with smart technology woven into the garment - but what will it do, and do you really need it?

So far, both Google and Levi's are vague on the details, asserting that the technology is sound and what the garments can do depends on the apps that are created for it. The implications of which range from exciting to, frankly, mildly terrifying.

Denim may have been in fashion for generations, but now it has another function too

"This isn't a launch, it's a platforming opportunity," Paul Dillinger, vice president of innovation for the Levi's brand, told WWD. "It becomes a home to new forms and applications we haven't thought of yet. The potential is that the input is the gesture - crossing your legs, swiping, saving, lifting."

The new sensors could also "alert the wearer to weight gain," Grant Hughes, founder of software development company FocusMotion, said, and might also "recommend a workout or provide a discount at a gym or yoga class… helping people live healthier lives."

While the technology has advanced quickly, with no modification to the Levi's fabric needed to add the technological element, not everyone is as excited as the company.

"I can control my music on the sleeve of my shirt or mute my phone on my pants leg," said Peter Li, chief executive officer of Atlas Wearables, which allows users to monitor their fitness through a wristband. "I'm not totally convinced that is a breakthrough."

What happens if you spill a drink on your high-tech jeans? Or have to wash your camera-concealing denim shirt? Many answers are still unclear, but what is clear - and what the partnership is relying on - is the universal truth that, unlike a tablet in your bag, or a watch on your arm, people need, rather than just want, clothes. And that could be what propels this idea into a realm that no other wearable has entered: must-have.