Meta is placing high expectations on smart glasses, considering this the next major technology product, which can even replace smartphones.
At the Meta Connect annual event in San Francisco this week, CEO Mark Zuckerberg affirmed that vision is no longer a distant vision, but is gradually becoming a reality.
While Apple continues to improve the iPhone 17 towards thinner, more cameras, Meta is betting on a completely different experience.
The company believes that smartphones have reached the saturatation threshold and smart glasses can open a new era.
If you dont have AI glasses, youre at a disadvantage compared to others, Zuckerberg stressed at his Q2/2025 income reporting meeting.
The biggest bright spot today is the Ray-Ban AI glasses line, a cooperation product between Meta and EssilorLuxottica.
Since the launch of the second generation in October 2023, this pair of glasses has sold more than 2 million units, with sales in the second quarter of 2025 tripling, contributing to Meta's revenue increasing by 22% over the same period.
Zuckerberg aims to reach 5 million units by the end of the year.
Unlike the failed Google Glass a decade ago, AI Ray- Ban glasses are not aimed at high-end technology experiences but focus on convenience.
Users can take photos, record videos, identify dishes in supermarkets or translate languages in real time.
With a design similar to conventional, light, and easy-to-wear fashion glasses, this product creates a sense of closeness instead of following the "scientific-fiction" style of many previous devices.
Initial success helped Meta strengthen ambition. The company has even bought a 3% stake in EssilorLuxottica, a group that owns many famous glass brands such as Ray-Ban, Oakley and Prada.
This move shows that Meta not only considers AI Ray- Ban as a testing product but also a platform to expand the hardware ecosystem.
However, Meta's ambition did not stop there. At this year's Meta Connect, technology experts predict that the company could get closer to launching a completely new type of smart glasses with an application display, notification, and wristband for gesture control.
The expected price is about 800 USD, equivalent to the standard iPhone 17 version. In addition, the Orion enhanced reality glasses project is also under development.
But Meta will face fierce competition. Because, Google has recently introduced smart glasses with the ability to display intuitively on the glass lenses.
This means Meta needs to quickly bring new technology to the market if it does not want to lose the advantage.
Ray- Ban AI glasses are not enough to replace smartphones, but the strong consumer acceptance proves that this could be a turning point.
With a long-term vision, Meta believes that the technology interface of the future will be right in the user's face, not just in a pants bag or wallet.
