Meta Is Going All-In On New Smart Glasses

Meta is no stranger when it comes to smart glasses. The company dipped its toes in VR when it launched the Oculus Rift. The company has since expanded its offerings to cover extended reality (XR) devices by working with Ray-Ban to produce a pair of smart glasses. Now the company is betting big on the future with reports claiming that Meta is working on three new smart glasses that could launch in 2027.

Three new models incoming

According to a report on Bloomberg by Mark Gurman, he claims that Meta is working on as many as three new smart glasses. These wearables are said to arrive by 2027. One of the models in question is an upgraded version of the Ray-Ban glasses, codename “Hypernova”. An earlier report suggested that Meta is working on a new version of the Ray-Ban glasses that comes with a built-in display.

The Bloomberg report claims the display will sit on the bottom of the right lens. The display shows users information such as apps, notifications, previews of images, and so on. These glasses won’t come cheap, though. The report suggests we are looking at a potential price tag of $1,000.

The next pair of smart glasses is codenamed “Artemis”. This is the commercially available version of Orion. For those unfamiliar, Orion is the codename for Meta’s prototype pair of AR glasses. You can think of these glasses as a more advanced and complex version of the Ray-Ban glasses.

It features AI integration, and the rumors claim that it comes with eye, hand, and neural tracking features. The Artemis model is an even more advanced version of Orior and is lighter, too. However, the cost and the ability to manufacture at scale are problems that Meta is still working on.

New sporty model

In addition to the two models mentioned above, Meta is reportedly working on the third new smart glasses model, a sporty version. Meta designs its Ray-Ban glasses to look casual, making them suitable for everyday wear. However, the report claims that Meta is partnering with Oakley to create a pair of smart glasses intended for active users.

Technically, both Oakley and Ray-Ban are under the same parent company, Luxottica. However, both companies do cater to different market segments.

The Oakley smart glasses are said to share a resemblance to the Ray-Ban model in terms of specs and features. It’ll be relatively simple—imagine cameras without a built-in display. The camera’s design will shift from the side to the center of the frame. This change is likely to attract athletes who want to capture their activities in a more lightweight and streamlined way.