A Startup Wants to Turn Your Car's Windshield Into a Giant Screen

What could possibly go wrong?

Big Screen

Today, many vehicles come equipped with a heads-up display that projects useful information, such as a car's speed or driving directions, right onto the windshield so that the driver doesn't need to take their eyes off the road.

But while those systems require just a small part of a windshield, Beijing-based company Futurus has built a heads-up display that transforms the entire thing into a display — foreshadowing a future in which the driving experience could look very different for both passengers and those behind the wheel.

Heads Up

Futurus plans to present its heads-up display technology at the 2020 Consumer Electronics Show, according to a New Atlas story, but it's already released several mockup photos of the system.

In addition to the regular driving data about speed and directions, Futurus's system would display augmented reality graphics that draw attention to what's happening outside a vehicle, noting a pedestrian in a crosswalk, for example. The display might also include a tiny AI avatar, who, for some reason, appears dressed for the opera.

Safety First

Futurus even claims it could display entertainment on the windshield in such a way that it could be viewed by passengers and not drivers, according to the New Atlas story.

We'll likely find out more about how it manages that feat at CES, at which point the company will also have to explain how all of this extra information might actually improve the safety of the driving experience and not just distract drivers from it.

READ MORE: Futurus wants to turn your car's whole windscreen into an AR display [New Atlas]

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