• Home
  • News
  • Fortune 500
  • Tech
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
Internet of Things

Levi Strauss and Google’s New Jacket Will Rule Your Smartphone

By
Jonathan Vanian
Jonathan Vanian
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Jonathan Vanian
Jonathan Vanian
Down Arrow Button Icon
May 20, 2016, 3:50 PM ET
Levi and Google Jacket (with tag)
Levi and Google Jacket (with tag) Levi Strauss

If you’ve ever wanted to swipe your sleeves to control the volume of your phone from your jacket, you’re in luck.

Google and Levi Strauss said on Friday that they developed a new jacket loaded with electronics as well as touch and gesture controls. These technologies let users interact with their smartphones by swiping at the garment in various ways.

Paul Dillinger, Levi’s (LVISF) head of global product innovation, discussed the new jacket, called the Commuter Trucker Jacket, during Google’s (GOOG) annual developer conference in Mountain View, Calif. this week.

Dillinger explained that the jacket is aimed at cyclists who may be too busy riding and concentrating on their surroundings to reach into their pockets and fiddle with their phones.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Additionally, the entire jacket is apparently waterproof—except for a detachable electronic smart tag that activates a wireless connection between the clothing and a mobile device.

“If you get this thing dirty, you put it in the washing machine,” said Dillinger.

The new jacket is powered by Google’s Project Jacquard technology developed by the Internet giant’s Advanced Technology and Projects Group. Google and Levi first said they were developing a new gesture-controlled jacket during the Google’s developer conference in 2015.

Google said its Project Jacquard technology involves conductive yarn that can be interwoven with traditional fabrics. With that conductive yarn placed throughout a garment in grid-like patterns, Google can essentially designated small areas on clothing that could act like touch screens.

Dillinger said that if people want to answer phone calls or control music on their phone, it “can be done with a swipe” of the garment. A video demonstration of a bicyclist wearing the jacket in action showed how a small swipe of the jacket’s sleeves could either trigger a song to play or a decline to answer a phone call.

For more about Google, watch:

Let’s hope that the companies are taking in account cybersecurity issues with this jacket. It’s one thing that people have to worry about their phones getting hacked, now they have to worry about their clothing.

Google and Levi did not say how much the jacket would cost, but it should be available in spring 2017 at Levi’s stores and its online store.

What’s next? Self-drying jackets, anyone?

About the Author
By Jonathan Vanian
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon

Jonathan Vanian is a former Fortune reporter. He covered business technology, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, data privacy, and other topics.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in

Personal FinanceCertificates of Deposit (CDs)
Earn up to 4.18% APY with the best CD rates available today, Dec. 3, 2025
By Glen Luke FlanaganDecember 3, 2025
15 minutes ago
Personal FinanceSavings accounts
Today’s best high-yield savings account rates on Dec. 3, 2025: Earn up to 5.00% APY
By Glen Luke FlanaganDecember 3, 2025
15 minutes ago
MagazineFood and drink
A Chinese ice cream chain, powered by super-cheap cones, now has more outlets than McDonald’s
By Theodora YuDecember 3, 2025
16 minutes ago
Personal Financemortgages
Current mortgage rates report for Dec. 3, 2025: Rates fluctuate slightly upward
By Glen Luke FlanaganDecember 3, 2025
2 hours ago
Personal FinanceReal Estate
Current ARM mortgage rates report for Dec. 3, 2025
By Glen Luke FlanaganDecember 3, 2025
2 hours ago
Personal FinanceReal Estate
Current refi mortgage rates report for Dec. 3, 2025
By Glen Luke FlanaganDecember 3, 2025
2 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Economy
Ford workers told their CEO 'none of the young people want to work here.' So Jim Farley took a page out of the founder's playbook
By Sasha RogelbergNovember 28, 2025
5 days ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Warren Buffett used to give his family $10,000 each at Christmas—but when he saw how fast they were spending it, he started buying them shares instead
By Eleanor PringleDecember 2, 2025
23 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
Elon Musk says he warned Trump against tariffs, which U.S. manufacturers blame for a turn to more offshoring and diminishing American factory jobs
By Sasha RogelbergDecember 2, 2025
17 hours ago
placeholder alt text
C-Suite
MacKenzie Scott's $19 billion donations have turned philanthropy on its head—why her style of giving actually works
By Sydney LakeDecember 2, 2025
24 hours ago
placeholder alt text
North America
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos commit $102.5 million to organizations combating homelessness across the U.S.: ‘This is just the beginning’
By Sydney LakeDecember 2, 2025
19 hours ago
placeholder alt text
AI
More than 1,000 Amazon employees sign open letter warning the company's AI 'will do staggering damage to democracy, our jobs, and the earth’
By Nino PaoliDecember 2, 2025
1 day ago
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.