Updated February 28, 2024:
- Added reporting by Business Insider
Meta’s CTO essentially confirmed that Meta will be demoing a prototype of its expensive AR glasses this year.
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In the latest AMA on Instagram, CTO Andrew Bosworth was asked how close Meta is to smart glasses with a HUD. Mr Bosworth replied:
A heads-up display is a very specific concept that describes what the screen on your glasses looks like. And as long as it’s actually interpreting the world and processing things around it in real time, that’s probably further down the processing side. On the display side, the world’s most advanced glasses will be introduced this year, but only on the inside. Although we plan to have a significant number of them, it is not yet economically viable to produce and distribute them on a large scale. It’s like a little time machine that allows us to look into the future and build and design for the future. We are certainly working on glasses with multiple levels of display, from smart glasses to full AR glasses, but we don’t have a timeline to share right now.
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Bosworth hinted in an interview late last year that Meta plans to release a prototype AR glasses in 2024. “I think there’s a pretty good chance that people will have the opportunity to play with AR glasses in 2024,” Meta’s CTO said. Bosworth said of the prototype:
This is probably the most exciting prototype ever developed. It may be difficult to say this, but I think this is the most advanced technology on the planet in its field. In the field of consumer electronics, this may be the most advanced of its kind we have ever produced.
At the AMA, Bosworth essentially confirmed that Meta has a prototype ready to show this year, but also hinted at something new. So while the glasses may set a new standard in terms of display technology, they are limited in terms of processing and physicality. – Understanding of surrounding time. Bosworth reiterated that AR glasses are only intended for internal use due to prohibitive manufacturing costs.
A second commercial version of AR glasses could be released in 2027, according to a leaked hardware roadmap. According to the same leak, the third generation of Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses could be launched as early as 2025 and could be seen in practical use for the first time. Equipped with a small viewfinder head-up display.
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Business Insider, citing multiple sources familiar with the matter, writes that Meta plans to unveil a prototype of its AR glasses at the upcoming Connect conference.
The first version of what is considered the company’s “true” AR glasses is an internal project called Orion, which is expected to be unveiled this fall, possibly during Meta’s annual Connect conference for third-party developers. The AR team was asked to demonstrate his high-tech glasses during Connect, ensuring a high level of performance, according to two people familiar with his plans who were identified and asked by Business Insider. It is said that there is pressure from within to do so. They remain anonymous so they can speak freely.
One of the sources also claims that a photo posted by Mark Zuckerberg in the thread shows “a specific prototype of unreleased AR glasses.”
Built: Mark Zuckerberg
