Mark Zuckerberg outlined Meta’s ambitions for AI smart glasses during the company’s Q4 2025 earnings call on Wednesday. Meta has shifted Reality Labs investments from the metaverse to AI wearables and its own AI models, with glasses sales tripling in the past year.
Zuckerberg drew a parallel between the current stage of AI glasses and the emergence of smartphones. He stated, “Billions of people wear glasses or contacts for vision correction. And I think that we’re at a moment similar to when smartphones arrived, and it was clearly only a matter of time until all those flip phones became smartphones.” This comparison underscores his view of AI integration into everyday eyewear as an inevitable progression, much like the transition from basic mobile phones to advanced smartphones that reshaped personal computing and communication.
He continued, “It’s hard to imagine a world in several years where most glasses that people wear aren’t AI glasses.” Zuckerberg emphasized this projection during the earnings discussion, positioning AI-enhanced glasses as a core future product line for Meta amid broader industry movements toward wearable AI technologies.
Sales of Meta’s glasses have tripled within the last year. Zuckerberg described them as “some of the fastest growing consumer electronics in history.” This growth reflects strong market reception for Meta’s existing lineup, which includes multiple models available for purchase.
Meta’s pivot in Reality Labs focuses production on AI wearables. The division, previously centered on metaverse development, now prioritizes hardware like smart glasses alongside advancements in proprietary AI models to power these devices.
Google plans to launch a line of smart glasses this year. This follows a $150 million deal with Warby Parker, aimed at integrating AI capabilities into eyewear distributed through the optical retailer’s network.
Apple is preparing to unveil smart glasses within the next year or two. The company has reassigned staff from a project for a lighter version of its Vision Pro headset to this initiative, according to Bloomberg reporting.
Snap announced on Tuesday that it would separate its AR glasses, known as Specs, into a new subsidiary. The move seeks “greater operational focus and alignment” for the hardware division, allowing dedicated resources for development and market expansion.
OpenAI, primarily a software firm without prior hardware experience, is developing AI wearables. Its efforts target devices like an AI pin or earbuds, diverging from glasses as the primary form factor.
Apple is also rumored to be developing an AirTag-sized AI device. This compact hardware aims to surpass the performance of the Humane AI pin, which has faced criticism in early reviews.
Meta currently leads the smart glasses market with several models on sale. Among these is Oakley smart glasses engineered for use during exercise, featuring designs that withstand physical activity while incorporating AI functionalities.
