Big news came in last week. Meta is making big moves to scale its smart glasses and AI investments, as the two technologies are becoming closer as parallel use cases emerge.
The XR hardware space is growing to include more hardware variety than in years past when the general market focused on VR headsets. Now, significant vendors deploy emerging hardware; on the flip side, software providers must follow suit and leverage the tools provided to create device-shifting applications.
But will the vendor space provide the frameworks needed to advance enterprise XR? It’s already happening, is the answer. Moreover, middleware services providers have established strong networks to advance enterprise XR today and are ready for tomorrow’s announcements.
Meta to Acquire Stake in EssilorLuxottica
Meta is reportedly discussing acquiring a five per cent stake in EssilorLuxottica, the owner of Ray-Ban. Based on LSEG data, this stake could be valued at $4.73 billion, given the company’s overall valuation of over $94 billion.
EssilorLuxottica, a multinational corporation based in Italy and France, is already working with Meta on developing Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. These glasses have outperformed the sales of Ray-Ban’s first-generation smart glasses, ‘Ray-Ban Stories’.
This potential deal could grant Meta more control over EssilorLuxottica’s smart glasses division and strengthen its position in the competitive market against tech giants like Apple, Google, and Microsoft.
Meta AI Comes to Quest Headsets
Meta is adding its AI assistant to its Meta Quest VR headsets. Meta AI has built-in Meta Llama technology and has been updated to enable your smart glasses to share your worldview and bring you text translations, fashion tips, and more.
According to the US tech titan, these Meta AI upgrades will begin rolling out in the US and Canada next month in ‘experimental mode’. However, Meta AI will not be available on Meta Quest 2.
Now, Meta Quest is gaining an intelligent assistant, and Meta has assured that as the technology continues to advance, it will perform regular software updates.
Meta’s blog post also touched on the exposure that its Meta AI has already had: “Millions of people have already tried Meta AI via Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, the web, and Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, and we’re thrilled for even more to tap into 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 the impending release of a ‘game-changing’ Vive headset.
HTC posted a video titled ‘HTC VIVE: A Vision for You’ on its company YouTube channel. The video ends with what appears to be a silhouette of a new headset.
The headset will likely support virtual reality experiences and contain the latest Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chipset.
The company wrote the following description to accompany the video, “Dedicated people have always found ways to break down barriers and redefine the human experience.”
At the beginning of this year, the US wireless technology provider Qualcomm announced that it will provide five companies with its new Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chipset, including HTC. This chipset will reportedly be integrated into Samsung and Sony headsets, Play for Dream MR and Immersed’s Visor.
Following the success of this headset, which represented about two-thirds of SteamVR users, HTC released its high-end VR headsets, Vive Pro and Vive Cosmos. However, these were nowhere near as popular as the original headset. Currently, HTC headsets account for under seven per cent of SteamVR headsets. Watch this space to find out more about HTC’s new headset.
Magic Leap Ditching its Hardware Business?
Magic Leap has reportedly laid off its sales and marketing teams because it decided to focus on licensing the technology behind its headsets.
The technology news provider Bloomberg shared the news that the augmented reality startup cut 75 jobs last week, according to two of its sources “familiar with the matter”.
Only a few years ago, Magic Leap made headlines after raising $3.5 billion from Alphabet and other key investors. These layoffs may signal the end of the company’s prominent position within the industry.
One of Bloomberg’s sources explained that Magic Leap had changed its strategy “to better align with market dynamics and emerging opportunities.”The source also mentioned that Magic Leap is adjusting its go-to-market approach to match market dynamics and emerging opportunities better. They are optimizing how they support their customers and ecosystem.
As part of this, Magic Leap has combined frontline engagement with its developer support and care teams. Through these teams, they will also actively support Magic Leap’s customers, developers, and extensive ecosystem.