Long known as the featherweight in the Big Tech Giants league, Snapchat wants the best opponents, Meta, Google and Apple, by releasing new augmented reality AI-enabled smart glasses before the big troupe.
Speaking at Tuesday’s meeting, SNAP CEO Evan Spiegel said the company will release a new version of its camera-equipped glasses next year and incorporate an interactive, AI-enhanced digital screen inside the lens. The 2026 release date is ahead of the meta where you plan to release AR “Orion” glasses In 2027, Google has not attached the date Android XR Glasses.
“The small smartphones have limited our imagination,” Spiegel said in a keynote address at the Extended World Expo Conference in Long Beach, California.
new “Snapchat specification” According to Snap, it is lightweight and Ai-enhanced. It allows users to see real world objects and use AI to access information, such as translating material for foreign labels. Glasses also allow users to interact with objects on the lens, Snap cites examples such as playing video games with the eyeball.
The company did not share photos of the spec frames or provide information on pricing. As part of the Specs announcement, Snapchat shared that Openai’s operating system partnership with Google Gemini extends to the eyeglass experience.
If Snap continues its promise for a 2026 launch, it became the first big tech company to market with mainstream consumer expansion reality glasses, claiming an early lead in the race to create a successor to smartphones.
Snap, a pioneer in the glasses form factor, created waves in 2016 by releasing “Spectacles.” The funky look was equipped with a camera that allowed users to post photos and short video clips directly into their Snapchat feeds. However, in recent years, Snap’s Spectacles have been devoured by Meta, and Meta has partnered with Essilorluxottica to release Ray-Ban smart glasses. Meta doesn’t share finances around Ray-Ban glasses, but Esilolluxottica pointed out that since its debut in 2023, the company has sold over 2 billion glasses. Luxottica plans to increase its co-branded eyeglass products to 10 million units by 2026, suggesting that companies are pleased with the outcomes and possibilities of the glasses.
However, Meta glasses don’t have AR functionality. Rather, glasses come with audio-based AI features as well as photo and video features. Meta has said it will release Orion AR glasses in 2027, using technology that allows users to scan thread feeds with eye tracking hardware.
Other high-tech giants also carry glasses. At the IO developer meeting in May, Google announced that it will partner with Warby Parker to join the Smart Glasses Market. And, with a $3,500 VisionPro headset failing to overtake consumers, Apple is reportedly releasing smart glasses next year that mimics the current version of Meta’s Ray-Ban, but is still working on more advanced AR glasses that are just a few years away. According to Bloomberg.
Specification announcements continue during Snapchat’s turbulent accounting period. After years of worrying financials, Snapchat seems to have Stable Increased free cash flow in the most recent quarter. Glasses is partly a revenue diversification effort as the company is propagated through advertising to social networks.
Still, Snapchat didn’t share what glasses cost consumers. Meta Ray-Ban glasses that do not have AR features cost between $239 and $303, so it’s reasonable to assume that the specifications will be priced sharply due to hardware requirements.
Glasses’ style and comfort are likely also important, with consumers repeatedly showing dislike for bulky or nerdy smart glasses and headsets. With its release date in 2026, SNAP is back in conversation, but success depends on whether consumers can actually produce the products they want to wear.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com.
