Snap Inc. announced it will launch a “lightweight, immersible” consumer line of AR smart glasses called “Specs” in 2006 (breaking from its “Spectacles” branding). Announcing the sixth-generation of its glasses at the Augmented World Expo conference this week, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel said the eyewear offers “an ultra-powerful wearable computer integrated into a lightweight pair of glasses with see-thru lenses.” Spiegel explained the glasses will be untethered, which suggests they may be powered by the new Qualcomm Snapdragon AR1+ Gen 1 chip, also announced at AWE. Coming a decade after Snap’s first attempt at consumer AR glasses, Specs leverage a $3 billion investment in 11 years of R&D. Continue reading Snap to Launch Specs Consumer Smart Glasses Line in 2026

During WWDC at Apple Park in California this week, the company unveiled visionOS 26 updates for its mixed reality Vision Pro headset that will up the ante for both consumer and enterprise users, with new spatial widgets and more realistic avatar Personas among the noteworthy updates. The customizable widgets will appear to blend into a headset wearer’s physical environment, “integrating seamlessly into a user’s space” and reappearing exactly where the user left them each time the Apple Vision Pro is activated. A great deal of effort has gone into improved iPhone integration, including the ability to initiate calls directly from the headset. Continue reading Apple visionOS 2026 Features Spatial Widgets, Better Avatars

Snapchat is offering experimental augmented reality and generative AI tools through its new Lens Studio iOS app and web tool. According to the company, “you can generate your own AI effects, add your dancing Bitmoji to the fun, and express yourself with Lenses that reflect your mood or an inside joke.” The app responds to text prompts, producing filters that can be published to Snapchat. Snap previously offered generative AI capabilities only to professional creators as part of its Lens Studio. The company has also launched an app that lets users read and reply to messages using their Apple Watch. For professional developers, Snap’s Lens Studio has added tools to build Bitmoji games. Continue reading GenAI Powers Snapchat Tools for Creating AR Lenses, Bitmoji

Google and Xreal publicly displayed the first eyewear to run Android XR. Developed as Project Aura, the extended reality smart glasses are expected to be available for purchase later this year or in early 2026. Google is also working with Samsung on a headset as part of Project Moohan. Pricing on the Aura glasses wasn’t announced at Google I/O, but they’ll reportedly cost less than the thousand dollar-plus price tags being floated for the Samsung device and Meta’s next-gen smart glasses, code-named Hypernova. At its annual developer conference, Google also showcased glasses being made with Warby Parker and Gentle Monster that won’t feature AR. Continue reading Google Tees-Up Android XR to Take On Meta, Apple Eyewear

French video game publisher Ubisoft has created a subsidiary focused on three of its most iconic and narratively cohesive brands: the worlds of the time-shifting actioner “Assassin’s Creed,” anthology mystery “Far Cry,” and tactical combat thriller “Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six.” Essentially a spin-off unit, Ubisoft has secured backing from its minority investor Tencent, which is plowing $1.25 billion into the new venture. The Chinese game giant — sixteenth on the Companies Market Cap list of the world’s most valuable companies, at $593 billion as of this month — in September 2022 upped its stake to 10 percent of Ubisoft. Continue reading Tencent Builds on Ubisoft Stake with $1.25B for New Venture

Snap has marked the six-month anniversary of its fifth generation Spectacles by showcasing new geo-location features that developers can start using now, and previewing what an all-day AR experience might be like, though that capability is not here yet. The latest Spectacles — introduced September 2024 and described as “still very much a developer kit” — have only 45 minutes of standalone battery power. But Snap has made immediately available for developers a swathe of geo-location data for better outdoor AR experiences, showcasing the integrations with gear from Utopia Labs. Continue reading Snap Updates Geo Data for Spectacles, Previews All-Day AR

Snapchat has introduced AI Video Lenses for those paying $16 per month for its Platinum tier. Powered by Snap’s custom-built generative video model, the initial three releases are a fox that perches on your shoulder, rambunctious racoons and a large bouquet of flowers with a zoom out effect. After selecting an AI Video Lens and applying it to a Snap, the AI video generates in the background, auto-saving save to Memories while users are free to continue messaging and Snapping on the app. The resulting video can be shared with friends or to Stories and Spotlight. Continue reading Snap Launches Generative AI Video Lenses for Platinum Subs

Google is serious about making Android the operating system of choice for smart glasses and XR eyewear. In an IP play, the Alphabet company is purchasing aspects of HTC Vive for $250 million in cash. Since debuting in 2016, Vive has earned the respect of competitors and an enthusiastic consumer fan base. While it hasn’t grabbed headlines with the same velocity as major players such as the Meta Quest or Apple Vision Pro, HTC is still pushing its Vive line of virtual and mixed reality headsets, accessories and games, and may be destined for a second act. Google gains HTC’s XR expertise at a propitious time. Continue reading Google Makes $250M Deal to ‘Accelerate’ XR Using HTC Vive

TCL announced three different smart glasses at CES 2025, led by the flagship RayNeo X3 Pro. Powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1 chipset, its lenses feature full-color micro LED screens. The specs also boast a dual-camera setup — one for picture-taking and augmented reality vision and the other to assist with things like room- and hand-tracking. The midrange RayNeo V3 doesn’t have integrated lens screens, but comes with a 12MP Sony IMX681 sensor, on-device speakers and a trio of microphones. Rounding out the bunch, the RayNeo Air 3 AR smart glasses need to connect to a compatible USB-C device to create a 201-inch virtual screen floating screen. Continue reading CES: TCL Introduces Three Models of RayNeo Smart Glasses

The Xreal One Pro AR glasses have raised the stakes for those competing in the wearable augmented reality space, according to some CES 2025 attendees. The eyewear, which debuted at the show, updates the Xreal One, released in the U.S. last month. The Pro’s cinematic virtual display (of up to 447 inches) comes with 57-degree field of view, an improvement over the Xreal One’s 50-degree FOV. Xreal says the Pro model offers “professional-grade color accuracy.” An optional detachable 12MP camera, Xreal Eye, captures photos and video. The new model will sell for $500 starting in March. Continue reading CES: Xreal One Pro AR Glasses Are Thinner, with Greater FOV

Long billed as a manifestation of augmented reality (AR), the field of smart glasses has seen a wide range of products emerging on the market over the years. Notable products include the Ray-Ban Meta collection (a collaboration with Meta Platforms), Microsoft’s Hololens, and Vuzix’s entire product line. A survey at CES this year indicated the market of head-worn wearable computers is by no means a mature market. Our team found a few companies demonstrating their latest offerings. The principals of these companies believe their innovations differentiate from the current field with their own paths for solving specific use cases. Continue reading CES: Companies Present AR Use Cases for New Smart Glasses

BMW has revealed an upcoming release of its iDrive operating system that essentially turns the entire windshield into a 3D heads-up display. The “close-to-production” version of BMW Panoramic Vision showcased at CES 2025 integrates augmented reality to layer navigational directions and driver assistance tips onto the windshield. It also does away with the conventional dashboard “gauge cluster,” projecting digital equivalents onto the windshield that can be customized. The setup is powered by the new BMW Operating System X and will be introduced in all new BMW models from the end of 2025. Continue reading CES: BMW iDrive Turns the Car Windshield into an AR Display

CES Unveiled 2025 offered a preview of new technologies two days ahead of the official opening of the massive CES show floor in Las Vegas on January 7. From AI-powered tools and robotics to energy-saving innovations and immersive displays, the event showcased a spectrum of advancements. Among the more notable highlights included cognitive AI demonstrated by Neural Lab, the latest brain-computer interface tech from Naqi Logix, AR and smart glasses developed by companies such as Rokid and Mustard, and a variety of interesting video- and audio-related offerings to be showcased at CES. Continue reading CES Unveiled: Preview of Tech to Be Featured at Trade Show

DJI, a leading maker of consumer drones, is releasing Goggles N3 — first-person view (FPV) eyewear that offers improvements over its predecessor, Goggles 3, for less than half the original list price. Currently on preorder for $299 from DJI and Amazon, Goggles N3 has the same 1080p display as the earlier model with a wider field of view — 54 versus 44 degrees. The new product is also lighter than Goggles 3, with a bigger viewing cabin that can accommodate even very large eyeglasses, eliminating the need for diopter adjustments or custom lenses for prescription wearers. Continue reading DJI Intros New First-Person View Drone Goggles N3 for $299

D-ID has launched two new types of AI-powered avatars: Premium+ and Express. The company’s video-to-video avatar tools aim to provide personal look-alikes that can sub for their creators in uses ranging from instructional videos to business presentations, offloading on-camera duties in areas including sales, marketing and customer support. “Premium+ Avatars can generate hyper-realistic digital humans that are indistinguishable from real people and will serve as the foundation for fully interactive digital agents revolutionizing how brands communicate,” while Express Avatars can rapidly generate serviceable avatars “from just one minute of source footage.” Continue reading D-ID’s New Business-Use Avatars Can Converse in Real Time