The Taara division of Alphabet Inc., which provides internet access via laser-powered network equipment, is being spun off.

Today, the parent company of Google LLC announced the change. Previously a part of Alphabet's X research department, Taara will now operate independently. The technology behind Taara's hardware was once created as a component of Loon, another X project that was shut down in 2021. The plan was to use network equipment mounted on balloons to offer internet connection. These balloons used laser beams to communicate with one another while floating close to the edge of space.

Loon's laser technology was modified by Taara for use in equipment for terrestrial networks. The Taara Lightbridge, a wireless communications device roughly the size of a traffic light, is the company's main product. It uses invisible laser beams to send data across the atmosphere.

The Taara Lightbridge is marketed as an easier-to-use substitute for conventional fiber internet. Fiber-optic cable deployment is a costly undertaking that occasionally takes years to complete. On the other hand, Taara's systems require many hours to set up.

The Taara Lightbridge converts user online traffic into a pencil-wide laser beam. To go to a second Taara Lightbridge, which then transmits the data to a third system, and so on, that beam must fly more than 12 miles. Traffic moves across nodes until it reaches the network of the closest telecom provider.

The data-carrying laser beam must be precisely focused on the closest Taara Lightbridge receiver in order to sustain a dependable connection. A complex system of mirrors, lenses, and sensors is used to do this. Taara is presently working on shrinking that optical apparatus into a fingernail-sized device.