Social media and technology giant Meta unveiled a series of AI-powered features for its mixed and virtual reality products during its annual Connect event on Wednesday, showcasing some of its latest tech as the company attempts to catch up and overtake industry rivals.
While a new Meta Quest headset and updates to its Horizon and virtual apps dominated the presentation, it was the company’s new mixed reality glasses, Orion, that stole the spotlight.
Orion AR Glasses
Meta’s Orion prototype augmented reality glasses, previously codenamed Project Nazare, include access to the company’s flagship generative AI model, Meta AI, holographic displays, and hands-free communication.
Instead of generating an image inside the glass, Orion uses projectors built into the arms of the glasses that shoot light into waveguides. Those waveguides feature nanoscale, 3D structures etched into the lenses to diffract light and put holograms at different depths and sizes into the world in front of the wearer.
Custom-designed silicon and sensors control everything, with a battery embedded in the arm of the glasses providing power.
Calling it the company’s north star, Meta said augmented reality glasses combine “the convenience and immediacy of wearables with a large display, high-bandwidth input, and contextualized AI” in a comfortable form for everyday use.
Users can control the Orion glasses through voice and AI, eye and hand tracking for gestured commands, and a neural interface in the form of a wristband.
Orion has yet to be released to the public but will be tested among employees and select partners to work out any bugs for a release in the future.
Ray-Ban Meta Glasses
Meta’s Ray-Ban line of glasses is also receiving an upgrade. That includes upcoming integrations with Audible and iHeartRadio, as well as an upgrade to the glasses’ AI assistant.
Wearers can now look at an object and ask Meta AI a question about the object instead of having to say “Hey Meta” every time they want to ask a question, the CEO explained. Cooler still, the glasses will have a reminder feature and can scan and remember objects the wearer looks at.
There are also live translations, where two people talking to each other in different languages can understand what the other is saying in real time, as demonstrated live onstage between UFC flyweight champion Brandon Moreno and Zuckerberg.
Meta AI
Meta AI, meanwhile, is getting an overhaul with new features, including voice interaction across Meta’s suite of apps, letting users ask questions and receive responses across platforms.
“We’re adding multi-modal video AI, so meta AI is now going to be able to give you real-time help as you were doing things like trying to figure out what outfit you want to wear for a party that you’re going to,” Zuckerberg said.
Meta AI users can also ask the chatbot questions and edit photos, thanks to advances with Llama 3.2. In addition, an AI studio is being implemented, allowing creators to build their own AI Agents.
Voice conversations for users interacting with AI will also be made available, responding in a number of celebrity voices, including wrestler and actor John Cena, Judi Dench, Kristen Bell, and Nora Lum, known professionally as Awkwafina.
Zuckerberg said that while AI updates would be available worldwide, they would not be available in the EU.
Meta Quest 3S Headset
The Meta Quest 3S, the company’s latest virtual reality headset, also made its debut. Shipping on Oct. 15, the new Quest 3S headset is available for pre-order starting at $299 for the model with 128GB internal storage and $399 for the 256GB model.
With the launch of Meta Quest 3, the company said it would begin winding down the sale of its Quest 2 and Pro headsets by the end of the year or until they sell out.
Horizon OS
Updates to Meta’s virtual game and environment Horizon this year include photorealistic spaces called hyperscape, upgraded avatars, a new YouTube co-watching feature in partnership with Google, new exclusive games like Batman: Arkham Shadow, and an updated and more seamless travel between experiences.
“We also keep improving the social experience in Horizon because that’s kind of our thing,” Zuckerberg joked, referring to the company’s history as a social media company. “Because a lot of the magic and mixed reality is this technology that lets you feel a sense of presence.”
For developers, Meta is opening up Horizon OS to more third-party developers. Developers, including Xbox, Lenovo, and ASUS’s Republic of Gamers, are already using Horizon OS, Meta revealed.
