GM of Android XR, Shahram Izadi, on stage at Google I/O 2025.
Google I/O (screenshot by Jason Hiner)
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ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Samsung’s AI glasses operating Android XR would compete with the Meta Ray-Bans.
- The sensible glasses will reportedly be introduced at an Unpacked occasion on September 29.
- The product shall be powered by Google Gemini and have options not included in Meta Ray-Bans.
Samsung’s AI sensible glasses to compete with Meta Ray-Bans will reportedly be one of many three leading edge gadgets Samsung will announce at an Unpacked occasion in South Korea on September 29, as ZDNET has reported. The opposite two merchandise are the Venture Moohan XR headset and the tri-fold smartphone.
Just like the Meta Ray-Bans, Samsung’s glasses shall be audio-only and shall be centered on options akin to offering quicker and extra handy entry to an AI assistant, cameras, and audio for calls, music, and podcasts, Additionally, based mostly on the identical studies out of Korea from Newsworks, ETNews and NewsPim, the Samsung glasses will embody navigation, real-time translation, and situational consciousness.
The identify of the product will possible be “Samsung Galaxy Glasses,” based mostly on a Samsung submitting with the US Patent Workplace.
Additionally: I wore Google’s XR glasses, and so they already beat my Ray-Ban Meta in 3 methods
Primarily based on prior statements by Samsung, Google, and Qualcomm, the Galaxy Glasses will run Android XR and can more than likely be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1, the identical chip that powers Meta Ray-Bans — although Qualcomm introduced its next-gen Snapdragon AR1+ Gen 1 in June 2025 on the AWE occasion.
In the course of the Google I/O keynote in Might 2025, the GM of Android XR, Shahram Izadi, stated, “We’re taking our partnership with Samsung to the following degree by extending Android XR past headsets to glasses. We’re creating the software program and reference {hardware} platform to allow the ecosystem to construct nice glasses alongside us. Our glasses prototypes are already being utilized by trusted testers.”
As certainly one of Google’s founding collaborators on Android, Samsung will surely be thought of a trusted tester.
Android XR prototype demoed at Google I/O 2025.
Kerry Wan/ZDNET
Anshel Sag, Principal Analyst at Moor Insights & Technique, sees a transparent path ahead for Samsung on this house. He stated, “Samsung actually will get it, based mostly on all the pieces I’ve seen from the corporate relating to wearables. Samsung makes a few of the finest {hardware} obtainable, and if the corporate can ship aggressive {hardware} paired with Google Gemini and Android XR, that may very well be a really highly effective answer.”
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Nevertheless, Sag does not suppose there’s been sufficient time for Samsung to have built-in the next-gen Snapdragon AR1+ Gen 1 chip for sensible glasses that was launched this spring and guarantees a 20% smaller footprint, decrease energy consumption, higher picture high quality in pictures and movies, on-device language fashions, and higher privateness by sending fewer AI queries to the cloud.
“I’m not positive it will likely be an AR1+ Gen 1, but it surely may very well be — provided that the announcement occurs this 12 months and the product ships subsequent 12 months,” stated Sag. “Once I final spoke to Qualcomm at AWE 2025, it did not look like we have been getting AR1+ Gen 1 merchandise till someday subsequent 12 months.”
Let’s not overlook that earlier than Samsung’s September 29 announcement, Meta will unveil its subsequent sensible glasses at Meta Join on September 17. Meta is predicted to launch two merchandise — a set of $800 AR glasses codenamed Hypernova and an incremental improve to its standard audio-only AI glasses, the Meta Ray-Bans.
There’s additionally much more taking place within the sensible glasses house this fall with new merchandise anticipated from Rokid, Even Realities, Good Labs, and others.
ZDNET reached out to Samsung for remark and can present updates once we be taught extra.
