---
title: "TV Viewers Can Now Change the Channel With Just Their Eyes"
description: "A new Comcast feature pairs with eye-tracking systems to allow customers to use their eyes like they would a remote control."
date: "2019-06-17"
modified: "2019-06-17"
authors:
  - name: "Kristin Houser"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/kristin"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/comcast-eye-tracking-feature"
categories:
  - "Future Society"
tags:
  - "comcast"
  - "eye-tracking"
  - "television"
  - "the digest"
---

# TV Viewers Can Now Change the Channel With Just Their Eyes

![A new Comcast feature pairs with eye-tracking systems to allow customers to use their eyes like they would a remote control.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/comcast-eye-tracking-feature.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Comcast\</em\>*

## Mission: Control

On Monday, Comcast [launched Xfinity X1 eye control](<https://corporate.comcast.com/press/releases/comcast-launches-eye-control-for-television>), a feature that pairs with existing eye-tracking systems to let customers use their eyes like they would a remote control — with a well-placed glance, they can now change the channel, set a show to record, or search for a program.

The initial hope is that the system will make it easier for people with physical disabilities to enjoy television — but that's just one part of Comcast's bigger plan.

https://youtu.be/N2Mit1iQ9Qw

## The Eyes Have It

[According to *Quartz*](<https://qz.com/1645590/comcast-remote-control-lets-viewers-change-channel-with-their-eyes/>), this new feature signals the first earnest attempt by a U.S. entertainment company to offer its customers [eye control](<https://futurism.com/moviepass-eye-tracking-ads>) — and given the fact that Comcast is the [largest cable TV provider](<https://decisiondata.org/list-of-cable-providers/>) in the nation, the tech could change how a lot of people watch TV.

But Tom Wlodkowski, Comcast's Vice President of Accessibility, sees television as just the beginning.

He told *Quartz* that Comcast plans to eventually integrate eye-tracking technology into its smart home services to allow customers to control their home's lights, thermostat, or doors using just their eyes.

## Future Vision

If that rollout goes as planned — and the tech is easy to use — it's not hard to imagine people without physical disabilities adopting it too.

In other words, this new Comcast feature could signal the first steps along a path to a future in which we all put down the remote in favor of controlling devices with just our eyes.

**READ MORE:** [Comcast Launches Eye-Control For The Television](<https://corporate.comcast.com/press/releases/comcast-launches-eye-control-for-television>) \[*Comcast*\]

**More on eye-tracking tech:** *[Brutal Startup Is Using Eye Tracking to Force You to Watch Ads](<https://futurism.com/moviepass-eye-tracking-ads>)*

### Author social links  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristinjhouser>)