Snap and Meta Prepare to Showcase AR Glasses

We’re set to get a preview of the next stage of digital connection shortly, with both Snap and Meta reportedly preparing to showcase their respective AR glasses, which will eventually bring digital overlays to the mainstream.

As reported by The Verge, both companies are planning to provide demonstrations of their AR glasses next month, though they won’t be made available to the public just yet.

As per The Verge:

“The first big reveal will come from Snap CEO Evan Spiegel, who’s set to unveil the fifth generation of Spectacles on September 17th at his annual Partner Summit in Los Angeles. The following week, on September 25th. Mark Zuckerberg is slated to debut Meta’s first AR glasses, code-named Orion, at his Connect conference in Menlo Park.” 

Meta’s AR glasses reveal has long been rumored, but it’s been unclear exactly where Snap is in its AR development.

Because while Snap has had working prototypes of its AR glasses with selected developers for some time, recent cost-cutting at the company had seemingly impacted its capacity in this respect. Evan Spiegel has maintained that AR remains a core focus for the business, but with Meta and Apple both building their own AR devices, it did seem like Snap may be losing ground, and could be forced to shift away from building its own AR hardware as a result.

But apparently that’s not the case, with AR Spectacles back on the horizon, though hopefully they’ll look a little more stylistic than the current iteration in testing.

Which is where Meta may have an advantage.

Meta’s deal with EssilorLuxiottica, which it’s now reportedly looking to buy a 5% stake in, has enabled it to produce more consumer-friendly digital glasses, which have been a big seller over the past year.

Indeed, Meta says that demand for its Ray Ban Meta Smart Glasses (formerly called “Ray Ban Stories”) is exceeding production capacity, which has enabled Meta to establish a foundation for the distribution of its next-gen glasses, which it’s reportedly planning to demonstrate at its Meta Connect conference on September 25th.

Both companies have been developing their AR projects for some time, with Snap initially leading the way with its Spectacles, which it first launched in 2016.

Like Meta’s Ray Ban’s, the current consumer version of Spectacles enables users to record video via their glasses, but does not include AR overlay capability as yet. But Snap has been building towards that since 2017, when it added “World Lenses” that transform IRL scenes.

Though as noted, with Apple launching its VisionPro, and Meta advancing its AR ambitions, it did seem like Snap’s capacity, which is already far more limited than both tech giants, would restrict its ability to compete.

But maybe, with its advanced development of AR experiences, and established distribution pathway, Snap actually stands a better chance than expected, while its links with Apple could enable it to establish some form of partnership on its eventual consumer AR product.

We’ll have to wait and see, but it’s definitely one to watch, as commercial AR has the potential to significantly change how people interact with the world around them, and the advertising and promotional options available to brands.

We’re not there yet, and the explosion of generative AI has taken up much of the AR hype. But we could be set for a new AR trend, sparked by the coming examples from both companies.