Big news came out last week: Meta is making a big move to expand its investments in smart glasses and AI, as the two technologies come ever closer together with the emergence of parallel use cases.
The XR hardware field continues to grow, with more hardware variety than in the past when the entire market was centered around VR headsets. Now, major vendors are embracing emerging hardware, but software providers must keep up and leverage the tools provided to create device-shifting applications.
But will the vendor space provide the necessary framework to drive enterprise XR forward? The answer is it’s already happening. What’s more, middleware service providers have established a strong network to drive enterprise XR forward today and are ready for tomorrow’s launch.
Meta to acquire stake in EssilorLuxottica
Meta is reportedly in talks to acquire a 5% stake in Ray-Ban owner EssilorLuxottica, which could be worth $4.73 billion given the company’s total valuation of more than $94 billion, according to LSEG data.
Essilor Luxottica, a multinational company based in Italy and France, is already working with Meta to develop Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, which have already outsold Ray-Ban’s first generation smart glasses, Ray-Ban Stories.
This potential deal could give Meta greater control over EssilorLuxottica’s smart glasses division and strengthen its position in a competitive market with tech giants such as Apple, Google and Microsoft.
Meta AI comes to Quest headsets
Meta is adding an AI assistant to its Meta Quest VR headset. Meta AI incorporates Meta Llama technology and has been updated to enable smart glasses to share your world view, provide text translation, fashion tips, and more.
These Meta AI upgrades will be rolled out in “experimental mode” in the US and Canada starting next month, according to the US tech giant. Meta AI, however, will not be available on the Meta Quest 2.
Now, Meta Quest is gaining an intelligent assistant, and Meta is ensuring it will get regular software updates as technology continues to advance.
Meta’s blog post also notes that Meta AI is already available to the public: “Millions of people have already tried Meta AI on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, the web, and through Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. We’re thrilled that even more people will be able to harness the power, intelligence, and utility of Meta AI on Quest 3.”
‘Game-changing’ HTC Vive headset coming soon
HTC has released a YouTube video about its upcoming “game-changing” Vive headset.
HTC posted a video on its YouTube channel titled “HTC VIVE: A Vision for You,” which ends with what appears to be a silhouette of the new headset.
The headset is likely to support virtual reality experiences and will be powered by the latest Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chipset.
The company captioned the video: “Committed people have always found ways to break down barriers and redefine the human experience.”
US wireless technology provider Qualcomm announced earlier this year that it would supply five companies, including HTC, with its new Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chipset, which will reportedly power Samsung and Sony headsets, Play for Dream MR and Immersed’s Visor.
Following the success of this headset, which accounted for roughly two-thirds of SteamVR users, HTC released its high-end VR headsets, the Vive Pro and Vive Cosmos. However, these were not as popular as the original headset. Currently, HTC’s headsets account for less than 7% of SteamVR headsets. For more information on HTC’s new headsets, check out this page.
Is Magic Leap going out of the hardware business?
Magic Leap has reportedly laid off its sales and marketing team as it decides to focus on licensing the technology behind its headsets.
Technology news provider Bloomberg reported the news that the augmented reality startup cut 75 jobs last week, citing two sources familiar with the matter.
Just a few years ago, Magic Leap made headlines after raising $3.5 billion from Alphabet and other major investors, and these cuts could mean the end of the company’s dominance in the industry.
One of the Bloomberg sources explained that Magic Leap changed its strategy “to better align with market trends and new opportunities.” The source also said that Magic Leap is adjusting its go-to-market approach to better align with market trends and new opportunities. The company is optimizing how it supports its customers and ecosystem.
As part of this, Magic Leap has consolidated its frontline efforts with Developer Support and Care teams that proactively support Magic Leap’s customers, developers, and the broader ecosystem.
