Exclusive: Google's secret 'Project Toscana' fixes the Pixel's biggest face unlock flaw

Since Apple introduced Face ID on the iPhone X in 2017, no company has managed to crack the code for face unlock on Android phones. We’ve seen attempts here and there, but nothing that’s caught on for mainstream devices. However, that may soon change, thanks to none other than Google itself.

According to an anonymous source, Android Authority has learned that Google is developing “Project Toscana” — the company’s latest attempt at advanced facial recognition for not just Android phones, but Chromebooks, too.

Per our source, Google recently tested Project Toscana with UX testers in Mountain View, CA. Our source used Project Toscana on a Pixel phone with a single hole-punch camera cutout and on two Chromebooks with external cameras (of which the circuitry and motherboard were exposed, so not the final design).

Importantly, the tests were conducted under various lightning conditions, and according to our source, Project Toscana worked just as quickly as Face ID on the iPhone. It’s unclear what technology Google is using for Project Toscana (likely IR, though unconfirmed), but it’s clearly a more advanced approach compared to the current face unlock feature on Pixel phones today.

As you might recall, this isn’t the first time Google has dabbled with face unlock technology. The Pixel 4 series used a combination of radar sensors and IR cameras for 3D facial recognition, and while it worked well, Google abandoned the tech a year later.

A basic face unlock was reintroduced in the Pixel 7 series, using just the front-facing camera, but it only unlocked the lock screen and nothing more. Using improved machine learning, the Pixel 8, 9, and 10 series featured an upgraded face unlock that can also be used for Google Pay, banking apps, and other secure app logins. It’s great in properly-lit environments, but as anyone who’s used those phones knows, it’s practically useless once the lights go down.

Based on what we know about Project Toscana, this new face unlock system should provide the best of both worlds – accurate face unlock in any lightning condition without any extra visible hardware or screen cutouts other than — at most — a single front-facing camera.

In October 2024, Android Authority reported that Google was considering an under-display IR camera for the Pixel 11 series to enable a more secure and reliable face unlock. It’s unclear whether Project Toscana will be hidden under the display in its final form, or whether Google has abandoned its under-display ambitions in favor of a more traditional hole-punch, as our source saw. However, what’s important is that this isn’t the first time we’ve heard reports of Google upgrading its face unlock tech.

Given our previous reporting and that Google is testing working versions of Project Toscana, it’s very likely we could see this new face unlock ship in the Pixel 11 later this August. It’s harder to pin down the release timing for Project Toscana on a Chromebook (and whether that Chromebook would be made by Google or another company), but sometime in 2026 seems like a safe bet.

Google hasn’t publicly talked about Project Toscana yet, but with Google I/O just a few months away — and given Google’s history of using the I/O keynote to showcase hardware projects like this — it might not be too long before we all get a glimpse at what the company is cooking up.