How Meta’s smart Ray-Ban glasses spawned a Silicon Valley hit
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Mark Zuckerberg has touted virtual-reality headsets as the next big thing. It turns out people may want something simpler: sunglasses with a camera.
Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses are gaining traction among consumers, who say they like using them to take photos for their friends and family as well as to create content for social media. The excitement comes as interest in the metaverse, an online world accessed via virtual-reality headsets, remains muted. Meta is expected to preview its latest pair of tech-enabled glasses at its annual developer and hardware conference Wednesday.
A Meta spokeswoman declined to comment. The second version of Meta’s smart glasses—which are made in collaboration with Italian eyewear giant EssilorLuxottica and are equipped with a camera, microphones and artificial intelligence—went on sale in October 2023. Zuckerberg, Meta’s CEO, said demand has been higher than expected.
EssilorLuxottica didn’t respond to requests for comment. “They did a really good job of boiling it down to the things that it’s supposed to do really well," said Ben Taft, a tech entrepreneur who sold his augmented-reality startup, Mira, to Apple. “For the early adopters like me who seek that experience, it’s a really robust piece of technology." The surprise excitement contrasts sharply with the tepid interest that greeted the first generation of glasses in 2021.
Meta sold about 300,000 pairs in 18 months, and less than 10% of purchases were still being actively used two years later. The company hasn’t disclosed sales figures for the more recent iteration of the glasses, but Meta has shipped more than 700,000 pairs, according to data provider IDC. Shipments more than doubled from the first
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