Meta Unveils 800-Dollar AI-Powered Smart Glasses to Challenge Apple

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, is set to unveil a new AI-powered smart glasses, codenamed "Celeste," at its annual Connect conference. The glasses, which feature a built-in display screen, are expected to retail for 800 dollars, marking Meta's first foray into consumer-grade AR+AI smart glasses with an integrated display.

The new smart glasses, internally referred to as "Hypernova," are designed to offer basic AI functionalities such as emergency message notifications and high-quality translations through a small digital high-definition display embedded in the right lens. This development is part of Meta's broader strategy to integrate advanced AI models with wearable devices, aiming to challenge Apple's dominance in the consumer electronics market, including smartphones and wearable devices.

Industry analysts have expressed skepticism about the new smart glasses' market prospects, citing its high price point and bulky design. The 800-dollar price tag is significantly higher than Meta's previous Ray-Ban series, which started at 299 dollars, and the more sporty Oakley glasses, priced at 399 dollars. This price difference suggests that the new product may have a negligible market share in the short term.

In addition to the new smart glasses, Meta is also expected to launch its first smart bracelet at the Connect conference. This bracelet will allow users to control the new smart glasses through gestures. Analysts anticipate that Meta will also showcase an updated version of the Ray-Ban series, which may feature higher-end cameras, improved battery life, and support for new AI functionalities.

Meta is also planning to open its new AI smart glasses development platform to third-party developers through a new software development kit. This move is aimed at attracting global application software developers to participate in Meta's ecosystem.

The new smart glasses represent a significant milestone for Meta in its journey towards true AR+AI smart glasses. The concept of the "post-smartphone era" highlights a shift in consumer electronics, where the demand for smartphones is slowing down, and new AI-powered wearable devices are gaining traction. This era is characterized by intense competition among various AI-powered consumer electronics.

In an August market declaration, Meta's CEO outlined the concept of "personal superintelligence," which includes an AI smart glasses that can "see, hear, and deeply interact with users 24/7." This device is envisioned to replace smartphones as the primary gateway to an AI-driven digital world. The CEO emphasized that such a tool would be incredibly useful if it could deeply understand users' daily lives, goals, and help achieve them.

Meta has long attempted to replace the iPhone ecosystem with its own smart consumer electronics products, but these efforts have largely been unsuccessful. The company now believes that Apple is lagging in the edge AI sector and has increased its investment in AI talent, offering substantial salaries to attract top global AI experts. Currently, Meta's AI smart glasses require integration with mainstream smartphones like the iPhone, but future models are expected to feature built-in displays and complete AI super assistant functionalities based on Meta's proprietary AI models.

As edge computing, 5G networks, and AI technologies advance rapidly, wearable consumer electronics devices are becoming increasingly capable of real-time data processing and seamless interaction with cloud-based AI models. This enables smart glasses to collect real-time environmental data, such as visual, auditory, and location information, and process it locally in conjunction with cloud-based AI models to deliver real-time generative AI applications. Complex AI tasks are handled by cloud-based AI systems, while time-sensitive or sensitive tasks are processed locally, such as voice interactions, real-time translations, augmented reality navigation, and contextual information overlays.

Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, the first AI smart glasses on the market, are equipped with integrated NPU SoCs, advanced cameras, and audio components. These technologies enable core smart functionalities like photo/video capture and audio playback, supported by device-side AI algorithms, edge AI on consumer electronics like smartphones, and the Llama cloud-based AI model, catering to a wide range of application scenarios.