Apple"s plan to launch smart glasses has been making headlines for quite some time now, with some reports suggesting the Cupertino firm has new AR glasses in the works. While Apple has remained tight-lipped about its alleged products, new reports hint at the company"s ambitious plan to jump onto the smart glasses bandwagon and take aim at the Meta-Ray-Ban partnership.
According to Bloomberg"s Mark Gurman, the team behind Apple Vision Pro is working on a slew of new products with "greater appeal." At least four new products are currently on the horizon, including a lower-end Vision headset for next year and a second-generation Vision Pro with a faster chip for 2026.
For 2027, however, Gurman says Apple"s Vision Products Group is working on smart glasses and AirPods with cameras. The justification behind these products is that Apple has spent piles of money on developing its Vision Pro"s visual intelligence technology, and to prevent billions of dollars worth of investment down the drain, it"d be better to use the technology on new products like smart glasses.
Users could access Apple"s alleged visual intelligence technology on iPhone 16 devices, but the company wants to "bring the Vision Pro"s ability to understand its surroundings to more products."
While Google Glass first popularized the concept of smart glasses in 2014, recent developments, particularly with Meta smart glasses, have sparked a new wave of Interest. Maybe Apple wants to seize the opportunity and take advantage of the hype surrounding these fancy products. Apple"s smart glasses are said to feature built-in speakers and mics, as well as AI-enabled cameras that scan objects in the surrounding world.
Another potential product in Apple"s pipeline is AirPods with cameras. Apple is apparently already exploring the idea of adding low-resolution camera sensors to its best-selling earbuds. These cameras could be used to "capture data that would be processed via AI and assist people in their daily routines."
However, with the departure of Tang Tan, one of Apple"s executives for product design and overseeing the acoustics team, these alleged products might not see the light of day.