Did you know Global Smart Glasses Shipments are Expected to Grow in 2025 After the Success of Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses

 

According to Counterpoint Research's Global smart glasses Model Shipments Tracker, global smart glasses shipments increased by 210% YoY in 2024 and surpassed 3 million units for the first time. It is mostly due to the high demand for Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. Smart glasses are glasses with electronic components and enhanced functionality, and Counterpoint has excluded AR-enabled eyewear from its definition. There are also AI smart glasses available in the market now, in which AI technology is incorporated for enhanced functionality and interactivity.

Counterpoint says that AI smart glasses should have AI-capable processors for performing on-device AI tasks, built-in speakers and microphones for voice interaction, and cameras for visual assistance and image recognition. The devices that only rely on cloud AI don’t qualify under this definition. Most of the AI smart glasses have battery, size, and heat limitation issues, so most of their AI workloads are handled in the cloud or by connected devices. The AI that works on devices, usually handles basic tasks like voice assistant activation, noise reduction, and simple commands. Even though these capabilities are limited, they are important for glasses to be qualified as AI glasses.

Based on the definitions, Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses are the first AI smart glasses in the market and have an advanced camera, an NPU-integrated SoC and audio components. Most of the earlier smart glasses focused on audio, connectivity, and battery life, but Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses are also enhancing the user experience through AI capabilities. When Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses were released, their shipments grew by 156% YoY in 2023 and by 210% in 2024. Meta dominated the market with 60% of the total shipments.

After the success of Meta’s glasses, other models of AI smart glasses also emerged in late 2024, most of them being from China-based companies. Some of these AI smart glasses were from brands like Loomo, Baidu, LOOKTECH, RayNeo V3, which emerged in the market to compete with Meta. Smartphone leaders like Samsung, Xiaomi and Transsion are also expected to launch their AI smart glasses in 2025, and more companies will do so in 2026. Meta is also expected to drop its broader expansion strategy and the global smart glasses market is expected to grow by 60% YoY in 2025 and will maintain a CAGR through 2029. But the AI smart glasses industry will have to go through a lot of challenges because replicating the success of Ray-Ban Meta will be hard, especially in Asia.