Meta Launches First Proprietary AI Smart Glasses... Low-Cost $299 Model

Smart glasses 'Starfire' created in collaboration with Kylie Jenner [Provided by Meta]

Meta, the top company in the global smart glasses market, has unveiled its first AI smart glasses under its own brand at a low price point.

Meta launched the smart glasses 'Meta Adventurer' and 'Meta Fury,' developed in collaboration with eyewear company EssilorLuxottica, on the 23rd (local time).

These products adopt a design similar to Ray-Ban's 'Wayfarer,' first introduced by Meta in 2023, and are priced at $299 (approximately 450,000 KRW), the same launch price as the first-generation Wayfarer.

This is less than half the price of the 'Ray-Ban Display,' which went on sale last year at $799 (approximately 1.2 million KRW).

The oval model 'Starfire,' created in collaboration with American celebrity Kylie Jenner, is priced at $399 (approximately 600,000 KRW).

However, these products feature Meta's proprietary brand prominently, rather than using EssilorLuxottica's brands such as Ray-Ban and Oakley.

Meta has equipped these new products with its recently introduced proprietary AI model, 'Muse Spark.'

Although these are non-display models, they are equipped with speakers, cameras, and microphones, allowing for voice conversations with AI, listening to music, and capturing photos and videos.

Meta has also indicated plans to introduce even lower-cost glasses without cameras, Bloomberg News reported.

Meta's new smart glasses, 'Meta Adventurer' (left) and 'Meta Fury' [Provided by Meta]

According to market research firm Omdia, Meta's global market share in AI smart glasses was 85.2% last year, effectively dominating the market.

Despite this, Meta's focus on low-cost products is interpreted as a strategy to prepare for future competition with companies like Google, Samsung Electronics, and Apple.

Google launched AI glasses created in collaboration with Samsung Electronics, Vuzix, and Gentle Monster at its 'I/O' developer conference last month. Predictions are also strong that Apple will release its own AI glasses next year.

In fact, Alex Himel, Meta's VP of Wearable Devices, identified Apple as a strong competitor in the smart glasses market, stating, "We have to take everything they do seriously," and acknowledged, "Apple is skilled in hardware and design."

However, he also criticized that Apple's closed approach to its iPhone operating system, iOS, prevents its smart glasses from interacting seamlessly with iPhones.

Meanwhile, in response to criticism that Meta was secretly attempting to add facial recognition capabilities to its smart glasses software, Himel clarified that while the feature was indeed being considered, its development is not currently underway due to privacy and societal impact concerns.