In a nutshell: Apple is reportedly preparing to launch a pair of consumer-grade smart glasses in time for the 2026 holiday season. The unnamed spectacles will likely include microphones, speakers, and cameras, allowing the wearer to interact with Siri and / or Apple Intelligence using only their voice, capture photos and video, listen to music, place and receive phone calls, receive turn-based directions, and more.
With launch just over a year and a half away, one could safely assume that Apple is deep into the development phase. Even if it took through the rest of 2025 to finalize the design, that would still give Apple nearly a full year to try out some prototypes, enter mass production, and host a public unveiling to hype the new glasses.
An Apple employee reportedly told Bloomberg that the glasses are similar to ones recently launched by Meta, "but better made." The Meta glasses are made in partnership with Ray-Ban and are available now in stores starting at $299.
Apple's end game is a pair of lightweight, augmented reality glasses. The new specs won't fulfill that goal as they won't feature AR smarts, but they will serve as a stepping stone along the way. With WWDC 2025 just around the corner, rest assured that Apple will have lots of new AI-related developments to talk about at the conference and that some of them will likely show up in next year's smart glasses.
As for other related wearables, Apple has reportedly decided not to move forward with a version of the Apple Watch equipped with a camera. Initial reports suggested cameras could help deliver AI features.
Some early smartwatches came equipped with cameras for capturing photos and videos but the concept never really took off. Shooting from the wrist proved awkward and mobile camera tech was still in its infancy so results were often poor at best. Privacy was also a concern, just as it was in the early days of smart glasses.
Image credit: Yasa Design Studio, Samuel Angor