Meta’s recent AI wearables reveal at Meta Connect 2024 has sparked speculation about how rivals, especially Apple, will respond. With Meta unveiling upgraded Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses and previewing its Orion smart glasses that combine augmented reality and AI, attention is now turning toward Apple’s potential counter move.
Rumors suggest that Apple may integrate advanced hardware and AI features into its next-generation AirPods Pro, possibly including cameras and AI capabilities to compete with Meta’s smart glasses. This anticipated rivalry could lead to a battle of wearables, with both companies striving to redefine how users interact with both the digital and physical worlds.
Meta’s Ray-Ban Smart Glasses vs. Apple’s AirPods Pro with AI
Meta’s upgraded Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses can take photos, live stream video, and provide hands-free control via voice commands. With Meta AI integrated, the glasses offer a conversational assistant experience. However, the Orion smart glasses, previewed at the event, go further by merging augmented reality with the physical world through holographic displays.
Apple, on the other hand, is rumored to take a different approach. Instead of focusing on glasses, Apple may use its AirPods Pro to integrate AI and infrared cameras for contextual awareness. The AI would likely enhance navigation, fitness tracking, and gesture control without the need for visual recording. This would align with Apple’s strategy of creating a more subtle AI-powered experience, focusing on audio and spatial awareness rather than immersive visuals.
Competing Visions for the Future of Wearables
The core difference between Meta’s smart glasses and Apple’s potential AI-enabled AirPods Pro lies in their focus. Meta’s glasses are designed for capturing and sharing visual experiences, while Apple’s AI-powered AirPods are likely aimed at improving environmental awareness and passive AI integration. Despite these differences, both companies share a vision of creating more immersive, AI-driven wearables.
Meta’s Orion smart glasses aim to fully integrate the physical and digital worlds through augmented reality. In contrast, Apple’s rumored AirPods with AI could offer enhanced spatial audio, navigation, and a seamless connection with Apple’s wider ecosystem of devices like the Vision Pro headset.
In the race for AI wearables, Apple and Meta appear to be taking divergent paths, with Apple’s AirPods offering a lighter, more audio-centric AI experience, while Meta pushes further into AR-driven visual interaction
