Google’s Regina Dugan Explains Why the World Needs a Modular Smartphone

Google’s Regina Dugan made the case for the effort of Google's Project Ara, an effort to develop a modular phone in which consumers could swap out the camera or get a faster processor, rather than replace the whole phone.

Dugan likened it to other moments in technology where the benefits of mass participation outweighed other factors like economics and efficiency. Chip design, Dugan said, was once relegated to only a few hundred people until better design tools were created, an effort that had an initial cost in terms of productivity but led to far more useful semiconductors. Likewise, personal computers allowed masses to use computing, but were underpowered compared to mainframes. However, the power of software quickly made the PC one of the most powerful tools ever seen. With Ara, though, Google is trying to apply this approach to a sector where consumers are more likely to dispose of rather than reuse the hardware. The key to Project Ara succeeding, Dugan said, is getting the project beyond Google and a handful of developers and into the commercial market where others can help shape its course. Even Google, which has been Ara’s champion, isn’t sure that it knows the best path for the device to take.