Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg took the stage on Wednesday to unveil the company’s next generation of artificial intelligence-powered wearable devices.
They represent the company’s next step toward a future where we all spend less time looking down at a phone screen, but rather interact with Meta’s AI technology — as well as our messages, photos and the rest of our online lives — via glasses not totally unlike the regular prescription lenses or sunglasses we might wear anyway.
The new slate of wearables is also a part of the company’s bid to make its AI technology a bigger part of users’ everyday lives as it competes with other industry players to create the most advanced and widely used models.
“Glasses are the ideal form factor for personal super intelligence because they let you stay present in the moment while getting access to all of these AI capabilities to make you smarter, help you communicate better, improve your memory, improve your senses,” Zuckerberg said.
Zuckerberg is announcing the new products during the keynote at Meta’s annual Connect event — where it outlines new AI, virtual and augmented reality and wearable technologies — from its Menlo Park, California, headquarters on Wednesday.
Smart glasses remain a relatively niche product, but consumer adoption is growing fast. Meta’s partner, Ray-Ban parent EssilorLuxottica, said in July that revenue from its Meta glasses more than tripled year-over-year. And the company is seeking to produce 10 million pairs of Meta glasses each year starting in 2026.
Zuckerberg said on Wednesday that the sales trajectory for Meta’s smart glasses are “similar to some of the most popular consumer electronics of all time.”