Apple and Samsung are preparing to challenge Meta in the global market for AI-powered smart glasses. Apple plans to unveil its first smart glasses at the WWDC conference in June 2027, with a commercial launch later that year. Samsung has already announced its device at the Galaxy Unpacked event in London on July 22. Both companies are expected to pose serious competition to Meta, which according to Omdia holds an 85.2% share of the global smart glasses market, reports the website infohub.kz.
Development of Apple's smart glasses was delayed due to the need to refine its privacy protection system. The Cupertino-based company plans to adopt a strategy similar to the launch of the Vision Pro: first unveil the platform to developers, then release the device to the market. The glasses will emphasize on-device data processing, forgoing facial recognition and AI training on users' photos. A version without a camera is even being considered.
Samsung, for its part, introduced its smart glasses in partnership with Google, Gentle Monster, and Warby Parker. The model, powered by a Qualcomm chip, uses Google's Gemini neural network. The device will go on sale in the fall and features real-time translation, navigation, and voice search capabilities.
Both companies intend to leverage their smartphone ecosystems to compete with Meta in the smart glasses market.