Meta's AI Ambitions Spark Market Surge and Revolutionize Smart Glasses Industry

As of last week, Meta (META) experienced a modest increase of 0.40%, marking a continuous rise for two consecutive days. Over the past two days, Meta's stock has seen a cumulative growth of 0.66%. During the last week, it rose 2.07%, and since the beginning of the year, has achieved an impressive rise of 34.35%, bringing its market capitalization to 1.9726 trillion yen.

Recent developments indicate that Meta has acquired the AI speech startup WaveForms, although the financial details of the transaction remain undisclosed. This acquisition marks the latest move by Meta's newly formed AI division, Superintelligence Labs. It is the company's second significant acquisition in the AI audio sector within a month, following its purchase of PlayAI.

WaveForms, founded just eight months ago, initially raised $40 million in a funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz, valuing the company at $160 million pre-financing. The two co-founders, Alexis Conneau, a former Meta and OpenAI researcher, and Coralie Lemaitre, a former Google advertising strategist, have joined Meta. Conneau is noted for his participation in developing the GPT-4o Advanced Voice Mode neural network at OpenAI.

Despite its official website now being offline, WaveForms' LinkedIn page highlights its dedication to addressing the "Speech Turing Test," aimed at determining listeners' ability to differentiate between human and AI-generated speech. The company has also been working on "Emotional General Intelligence," focusing on understanding and modeling individual self-awareness and emotional management capabilities.

In September, Meta plans to launch its first smart glasses equipped with a screen, with prices starting at $800. A recent report by Counterpoint indicates that during the first half of 2025, the global smart glasses market saw a remarkable shipment volume increase of 110% year-on-year. This surge is primarily attributed to the strong demand for Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, alongside contributions from new market entrants.

Meta is accelerating the development of a high-end version of these popular smart glasses, which are poised to feature advanced AI big model systems, hand gesture control, and a high-definition screen capable of independently displaying photos and other applications. This ambitious project, known internally as "Hypernova," is anticipated to be unveiled by the end of this year.

These innovations align with Mark Zuckerberg's concept of "Personal Super Intelligence," envisioning smart glasses as replacements for smartphones, ultimately serving as a primary digital gateway in daily life. Despite initial challenges, with technical barriers impacting user experience, Meta continues to evolve the concept of AR+AI-enabled smart glasses.

The industry sees growing momentum with multiple manufacturers entering the space, enriching product lines, and diversifying price ranges. Smart glasses are expected to increasingly incorporate upgraded models and AI functionalities, expanding their application portfolio and becoming versatile AI assistants across multiple scenarios.

In summary, the pace at which smart glasses penetrate everyday life is unprecedented. The transition from sci-fi ideas to practical applications is underway, enhancing social sharing experiences and immersive AR realities. These advancements not only transform how consumers interact with technology but also redefine the digital landscape.