The evolution of wearable technology has reached a notable milestone with the introduction of a new pair of smart glasses that merge augmented reality (AR) and artificial intelligence (AI). Innovatively crafted by the renowned augmented reality company, Rokid, in collaboration with Bolon—a fashion eyewear brand under Essilor Luxottica, this new gadget highlights a burgeoning trend in the tech industry where fashion meets functionality.
Previously, tech giant Meta (formerly Facebook) had successfully collaborated with Essilor Luxottica, extending their partnership until 2030, indicating a strong industry movement towards integrating sophisticated technology into everyday wearablesFollowing this trend, Rokid has emerged as a competitor, seeking to ride on the wave of smart eyewear popularity, which increasingly garners consumer attention and demandThe spotlight is notably on how this transition to intelligent eyewear has bolstered the standing of Essilor Luxottica, elevating it in consumer perception as a pivotal player in the smart eyewear domain.
While Rokid has marketed their AR glasses as suitable for continuous wear, the practical application of this claim has been met with skepticismThe design of their glasses, which are separated into distinct components, raises the question of comfort and feasibility for extended periods of useIf Rokid's primary aim is to dazzle consumers with an innovative experience, other manufacturers focus on delivering features that improve usability, seeking to breakthrough in ways that matter to consumers on a daily basis.
A week ago, another contender, Baidu, unveiled its first AI glasses at the Baidu World Conference, with a scheduled launch in the first half of next yearWhile various brands chase the allure of visually captivating AR glasses, Baidu has pivoted its focus towards AI capabilities and user comfortWith Xiaomi also entering this arena, the emergence of AI glasses appears imminent.
Some of the enthusiasm surrounding AI glasses can be attributed to the lack of substantial breakthroughs in the AR and VR sector
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Consumers seem less inclined to invest in products that offer a flashy appearance without demonstrating clear, compelling use casesThe chasm between novelty and true usability remains a significant barrier for many companies vying for consumer market share.
The landscape for AI glasses seems to be increasingly appealingAccording to a report by Beidou Research, the smart glasses market is projected to swell to a remarkable 106.7 billion yuan by 2029, showcasing a compound annual growth rate of 18.56%. This promising market growth underscores the commercial potential for several companies operating within this space, igniting fierce competition and innovation.
Among those making waves, Ray-Ban and Meta's collaboration has proven quite successful: by May, their combined shipments surpassed one million units, with year-end projections suggesting total shipments could exceed two millionStrikingly, during the Meta Connect 2024 event held in late September, CEO Mark Zuckerberg appeared to pivot his focus from the highly successful AI glasses, instead showcasing advancements in AR/VR tech, particularly through the Quest 3S and new AR prototypes like Orion.
Despite the two-hour duration of the presentation, Ray-Ban Meta received scant attention, with only about ten minutes dedicated to their features—most notably their adaptations for visually impaired users.
The surge of interest in both AR/VR and AI glasses can be distilled into two driving forcesOne is the optimistic market outlook, while the other stems from the relatively low level of smart technology integrated into glasses when compared to other wearable devices, suggesting ample opportunities for disruptive innovationsFurthermore, glasses offer a physical embodiment of immersive experiences, presenting vast possibilities for applications, interactions, and the practical integration of AI.
Beyond these motivating factors, the maturation of both hardware and software industries presents a fertile foundation for the rise of AR/VR and AI glasses
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An illustrative example of this evolution is the diverse array of chips currently available for AR glassesManufacturers can opt for the cost-effective MediaTek MTK solution or seek potent performance through Qualcomm’s offeringsAmid the push for self-sufficiency and the drive for domestic alternatives, companies like Unisoc have introduced their own W517 chip.
Significantly, the system-on-chip (SoC) and optical display modules represent major cost drivers in the overall pricing of AR glassesThe SoC accounts for roughly 35% of the costs, while optical modules can account for up to 43%, influenced heavily by yield ratesHence, AR glasses face a challenging road regarding competitive pricingIn contrast, AI glasses are becoming increasingly accessible, appealing to a broader market base with their more affordable price points and practical functionality.
As new models of AI flourish, advancements in powerful AI technologies—such as multimodality, reinforcement learning, speech recognition, and semantic understanding—are unearthing wider imaginative landscapes for the design and functionality of smart eyewearThe swift iterations and enhancements of AI models have even allowed AI glasses to leapfrog over the once-promising AR developments.
The current market for smart glasses now diverges into two distinct trajectoriesOn one hand, there are AR glasses, deploying waveguide technology and optical display systems exemplified by products like the Meizu StarV View, XREAL Air 2, and Huawei VR Glass, predominantly targeting immersive entertainment experiencesOn the other hand, the AI glasses sector, rapidly rising in prominence, relies on AI voice technologies to facilitate human-computer interaction, albeit without the immersive experience characteristic of AR glasses, but offering diverse intelligent experiences instead.
Among the key figures in this landscape is Meta, a company striving to balance investments in both AI glasses and AR/VR technology
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According to a representative from a domestic AI glasses company, "Ray-Ban Meta is fundamentally a pair of well-designed glasses." With robust hardware backing their AI glasses, they capitalize on low-latency responses to facilitate everyday activities, such as listening to music and making phone calls, leading to considerable sales success.
However, as manufacturers keep an eye on trends, it becomes clear that developing software capabilities often poses a more complex challenge than honing hardware featuresOne of the most promising competitors to Meta seems to be BaiduWith a robust AI backbone, Baidu appears to have leveraged its expertise to elevate the functionality of its forthcoming AI glasses.
Set for release next year, Baidu's AI glasses are described not merely as AI-infused hardware, but as a comprehensive system employing AIAnchored by the powerful Baidu Wenxin model, Baidu is building the DuerOS, an AI-native operating system that demonstrates strength in natural language interaction, multimodal awareness, and anthropomorphic representationThe cutting-edge model routing architecture (MoE) facilitates dynamic scheduling across various models to resolve different levels of complexity more efficiently and precisely.
Simultaneously, competing firms like Meizu, Huawei, and Rokid assert their positioning by embedding intelligent hardware attributes directly into their products, emphasizing their "hard properties." Yet, the perennial challenge remains: can AI truly address the absence of a “killer application” that has so long beset AR and VR?
AR/VR glasses have been a focus for numerous companies, commonly seen as a lucrative avenue for persistent investment; however, they have faced hurdles rooted in product form, weight, technological limitations, and practical usage scenariosThe current trajectory of both Apple Vision Pro and PICO illustrates the mounting challenges confronting AR/VR devices.
Data from Appfigures indicate that Apple Vision Pro saw the addition of ten new applications in September, revealing a notable slowing of growth, as developers' enthusiasm for a product that requires a "killer app" appears to wane
Historical comparisons with the iPhone and iWatch suggest that both products, in just one year since their launch, accumulated thousands of applicationsYet, for Apple Vision Pro, the count remains under two thousand.
PICO does not present a more favorable view eitherAccording to IDC, around 328,000 AR/VR headsets were shipped in China during the first half of 2023, with PICO holding close to a 60% market shareYet, even amid this leadership, PICO is scaling back operations, restructuring processes, and optimizing its workforce.
Price barriers compound the challenge of user acquisition; devices such as Apple Vision Pro and PICO 4 Ultra, priced above 4,000 yuan, fall into the realm of luxurious goods, making them less accessibleIn contrast, AI glasses are lighter, weighing less than 100 grams, while Baidu's forthcoming model is set to weigh merely 45 grams, offering a stark contrast.
Currently, AI glasses designed with user needs in mind are more likely to provide enhanced user experience in terms of portability and battery lifeThe prospect of AR/VR glasses competing for their “killer app” seems a stretch, especially given that developing consistent user habits is a time-intensive endeavor, causing many users to perceive such investments as “expensive toys.” In stark contrast, AI glasses concentrate on function, sidestepping some aspects of a mobile ecosystem.
In preceding discussions, we've emphasized the idea that, in the realm of AI hardware, the underlying strength is not merely about hardware alone or model development in isolationRather, it extends to integrating both hardware and software, enabling end-to-end optimizationThis assertion carries through to AI glasses as wellCritical questions circulate around which processes remain on-device versus those that transition to the cloud, how to best align sensor and storage combinations with our needs, and how to find the balance between cost and performance.
Baidu's recently launched AI glasses hint at a thoughtful solution to these challenges, providing a 16-megapixel wide-angle camera coupled with a self-developed AI stabilization algorithm that ensures stable captures in both static and dynamic settings
Besides supporting first-person "walk-and-shoot" capabilities, their deep integration with Baidu's geolocation services, encyclopedia, and search functionalities enable users to engage in "ask-while-you-walk" interactions.
Moreover, enhancements in multimodal interactive capabilities can be seen quite clearly in Baidu's AI glassesThey not only offer full-duplex voice interactions but also accommodate interruptions, provide rapid responses, and facilitate recognition and analysis of visual data, be it images, text, or physical objects, delivering real-time translations, summaries, and personalized recommendations.
Additionally, it’s noteworthy that Baidu's AI glasses are the first to incorporate satellite positioning capabilities at the device level, supporting both Bluetooth and WiFi connections, freeing users from reliance on mobile apps while providing reliable smart services.
As one AI glasses entrepreneur aptly stated, when it comes to smart products, consumers prioritize practicality and functionality over noveltyIn contrast to AR/VR glasses, AI glasses effectively mitigate concerns about balancing weight with battery longevityBaidu's product implements a low-power circuitry design along with optimized structuring, achieving considerable battery life and fast-charging capabilities.
When comparing industry standards, which often achieve around 50 hours of battery life with only four hours of uninterrupted music playback, Baidu’s AI glasses stand out with a remarkable 56-hour lifespan and over five hours of continuous music playback, with a mere 30-minute charge required.
With the landscape evolving, Baidu's efforts in developing AI glasses may just signal a significant and valuable endeavorSimilar to the success story of smart speakers a few years back, which evolved into diverse forms—ranging from screenless to embedded devices—AI glasses possess the potential to facilitate a broader range of applications compared to their AR/VR counterparts, sharpening the edges of their market position.
Following this stride, firms like Baidu, Xiaomi, and ByteDance sprinting into the industry could signify an accelerating differentiation within the realm of smart glasses: AI glasses zero in on practicality and realism, while AR/VR glasses continue to await the emergence of definitive applications for immersive experiences.
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