Meta Unveils First Ray-Ban Smart Glasses with Built-in AR Display

Meta unveiled “Meta Ray-Ban Display,” its first pair of AI smart glasses with a built-in augmented reality (AR) display, at the company’s annual developer event.

Meta Connect 2024 — the company’s developer conference — took place at its headquarters in Menlo Park, California, on Wednesday. The event featured a keynote from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, where he announced several new smart glasses products. He also introduced a neural wristband designed to work with the new Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses, enabling users to complete tasks such as sending messages with small hand gestures.

“Glasses are the only form factor where you can let AI see what you see, hear what you hear, and eventually generate what you want to generate, such as images or video,” Zuckerberg says during the keynote.

Meta Ray-Ban Display

CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced the new product, called Meta Ray-Ban Display, onstage — which will launch on September 30 for $799. They are equipped with a 12-megapixel camera and a full-colour high-resolution display built into one lens, allowing users to view calls and messages.

The new glasses have a small digital display screen in the right lens for basic tasks such as notifications, messages, and Meta AI prompts. The display also functions as a viewfinder when taking photos.

The Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses include built-in audio, up to six hours of battery life, and come bundled with the new neural wristband, which translates hand gestures into commands such as replying to texts or answering calls.

Oakley Meta Vanguard Glasses

Zuckerberg also announced the Oakley Meta Vanguard smart glasses, designed for runners, cyclists, and other athletes. These glasses will be released on October 21 for $499. Unlike earlier Meta models with two corner-mounted cameras, the Vanguard has a single wide front lens. It can record video in up to 3K resolution and features a 12-megapixel camera with a 122-degree wide-angle lens.

The Oakley Meta Vanguard also includes a programmable button that can trigger custom AI commands through the Meta AI app. All buttons are positioned underneath the frame to ensure the glasses can be worn comfortably with helmets. The device offers up to nine hours of battery life, or six hours of continuous music playback, and can be charged to 50% in about 20 minutes using the included charging case.

While these products will available in the coming weeks, it will still be several years until Zuckerberg releases Meta’s first pair of AR glasses “Orion.” Zuckerberg called the prototype “the most advanced glasses the world has ever seen” are anticipated as the culmination of the Meta CEO’s longstanding vision for the “metaverse.”

Image credits: All photos via Meta.