Menlo Park, California.
–
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg took the stage Wednesday to unveil the company's next-generation artificial intelligence-powered wearable device. Smart glasses with small display inside the lens
Metaray Bans display glasses represent the company's next step into a future where we all have less time overlooking the phone screen. Rather, it's not quite different to regular prescription lenses or sunglasses through Meta's AI technology and messages, photos and other online lives.
Displays and other new wearables are part of the company's bid to make AI technology a large part of users' daily lives. Compete with players from other major industries to create the most advanced and widely used models.
“Glasses are the ideal form factor for personal superintelligence as they allow you to access all these AI features and stay present in the moment, helping you become smarter, improve your communication, improve your memory and improve your senses,” says Zuckerberg.
Zuckerberg announced the new product on Wednesday from its headquarters in Menlo Park, California during its keynote speech at Meta's annual Connect event (Virtual and Augmented Reality, Wearable Technology Overview). Meta also showed off the latest version of the more basic Ray-Ban smart glasses, the Gen 2 and the new sports glass Meta Oakley Vanguard. and a new experience with three virtual reality headsets, including games and new entertainment apps, as well as a partnership with Disney+ for Horizon, an immersive “metaverse” experience in meta.
Smart glasses remain relatively niche products, but consumer adoption is growing rapidly. Esilolluxottica, the parent of Meta partner Ray Van, said in July that he had more than tripled the income from Metagrass than last year. The company has been trying to produce 10 million pairs of metagrass each year since 2026.
Metaray-Ban display glasses are key to reaching that goal, Rocco Basilico, chief wearables director at Essilorluxottica, said in an interview with CNN.
“You can feel good wearing glasses from your favorite brand, but if you really want some superpowers, some immediate information, etc., it could be delivered through audio or display,” Basilico calls a new display that offers “the biggest launch I've ever made.”
Zuckerberg said Wednesday that Meta's smart glasses sales trajectory “similar to some of the most popular home appliances of all time.”
Meta was early in making smart glasses that consumers actually want to buy, but it faces growing competition with Google, Samsung, Snap and potentially Amazon, raising the stakes of new technology rolling out since Wednesday.
We'll go into detail about the new display smart glasses and everything the company has announced at Meta Connect.
Meta has long described its Ray-Ban as a smart glass where you can see what you're seeing and hear what you've heard. Nowadays, Metaray-Bans displays also have visual feedback that lets users interact with their devices in new ways.
The display features a small display screen in the right corner of the right lens. The display appears to be predicted several feet in front of the user's surrounding environment.
This display allows you to do a variety of things you've done previously on your phone screen. View and send messages, capture and review photos and videos, look at Instagram reels, and shoot video calls where users see people on the other side.
“We've been working on glasses for over 10 years, and this is one of the special moments where we can show you what we've put so much of our life into,” Zuckerberg said.
It also has a navigation feature that shows users where they are on the map in real time. I walk somewhere without staring at the map app on my phone. Live captions and translations allow users to see what their conversation partner is saying in real time. (Conversations with captions are also saved as transcripts for meta AI apps. I think functional journalists are at least very useful!)
Users can also ask questions from Meta AI Assistant. In addition to providing audio answers, it also responds in an information panel on the display.
While users can interact with previous versions of Meta Ray-Bans using only voice commands, the Meta Ray-Ban works with a “neural” wristband that allows users to navigate the display using subtle hand gestures. For example, tapping your thumb and index finger acts as a selection function to press play in music.
Only the wearer can view the display screen. This is designed to protect the privacy of your messages, photos and other content. However, if people don't realize that Metaray-Ban Display users are actually reading incoming texts in the middle of a conversation, this can lead to a troublesome moment.
However, users can turn off the display screen when not in use. You can also wear glasses just like regular glasses.
“When designing hardware and software, we focus on making sure you have access to very powerful tools when you want them, then fade them into the background when you aren't,” Zuckerberg said.
Meta is not the first to try to create such a device. Google launched an early version of its glasses in 2013 with a lens-based display, called Google Glass, but flops with consumers. However, technology to enhance smart glasses such as processors, batteries and cameras has improved significantly (and reduced) over the past decade. The display looks a little heavier and darker than non-technical glasses.
The display runs for 6 hours on a single charge, and the case offers up to 30 hours of extra power. The wristband has an 18-hour battery life and is water resistant.
The Meta Ray-Ban display will be available for $799 starting September 30th and will be available at limited retail stores in the US, including Verizon, Lens Crafter, Ray-Ban and Best Buy locations.
Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2, It costs $379, similar to its predecessor, but with updated colors, battery life and camera. Battery life doubles to 8 hours, and the charging case offers an additional 48 hours of power.
The glasses can now capture high quality 3K videos as well. With updates set later this fall, they can also shoot slow motion and hyperlapse videos.
According to Meta, the new opt-in “conversation focus” feature makes it easier for Metaray-Ban wearers to hear someone during face-to-face conversations, even in loud areas. This tool uses the “open early speaker” of glasses to help others in background noise.
Connect's incomplete live demonstrations reminded us that despite advances, the technology is still in its early stages. The company tried to show it to chefs using meta AI on Gen 2 and get audio instructions to follow the recipe. When the assistant failed to generate a clear response, Zuckerberg denounced it on Wi-Fi.
Similarly, in the Metaray-Ban Display demo, Zuckerberg had a hard time answering a video call from Chief Technology Officer Andrew Bosworth, as the acceptance call button was not displayed on the display. “We'll debug it later,” Bosworth said.
The new Meta Oakley Vanguard is a smart glass designed for sports and outdoor activities, and costs $499.
Combined with the platform Strava and Garmin, it allows users to track their workouts. The Meta AI app has a new “training” section that displays activity details, photos captured with smart glasses, videos, and AI summary for each workout.
Vanguard boasts bigger and bigger speakers. For example, users can ride windy bikes and listen to music. The Vanguard's control buttons are located at the bottom edge of the glasses' arm, while other Metaray Bans have top capture buttons, so users can access it if they are wearing a helmet.
Pioneering glasses can withstand water and dust. Additionally, cameras that focus on the bridge of the nose rather than the sides have a wider field of view compared to other glasses in Meta, allowing you to capture 3K videos.
“I took them on surfing,” Zuckerberg said. “It's okay, it's fine.”
CNN received a demo of Vanguards, paired with a Garmin Watch. On the treadmill walk, Vanguard's meta AI can answer questions about, for example, current heart rate and length of exercise.
