Snap plans to release first consumer AR smart glasses, ‘Specs,’ in 2026

Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Snap Inc Evan Spiegel wears the Spectacle Augmented Reality glasses in Paris on May 19. Photographer: Joel Saget/AFP/Getty Images
Snap plans to launch its first consumer pair of augmented-reality glasses next year, called “Specs,” beating a planned release from rival Meta Platforms by several months, while Apple’s smart glasses are reportedly in development.
Samantha Kelly and Mark Gurman for Bloomberg News:
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The new eyewear, called Specs, will be a smaller and lighter version of a device called Spectacles it made available to software developers last year, the company said Tuesday. Those glasses, which are available to developers for $99 per month, run the company’s Snap OS operating system and are controlled using hand gestures, two features that will come to the consumer version.
Given Meta’s growing success with its Ray-Bans glasses line and its planned move to launch AR glasses in 2027 code-named Artemis, Snap’s decision to move forward with consumer-focused hardware has taken on fresh urgency.
The Specs won’t use an external battery and the updated design will focus on comfort and usability. The glasses will be available in black to start, with special editions to possibly follow later, Chief Executive Officer Evan Spiegel said in an interview. He did not disclose the price or hardware specifications, except to say that the glasses will cost less than Apple’s $3,499 Vision Pro headset.

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MacDailyNews Take: lol.
Apple CEO Tim Cook

The glasses also incorporate an artificial intelligence assistant, a way to play games with friends, and a “workstation” area where users can do things like browse the web and stream video.
In the interview, Spiegel teased a handful of upcoming hardware features and software capabilities, such as using AI to help change a tire, set the dining room table or nail a tricky billiards shot.
Specs will also integrate with various AI models, including those from OpenAI and Alphabet Inc.’s Google, allowing developers to build AI-powered Lenses that can respond to various inputs in real time. The device will also support uses such as AI text translation, currency conversion and recipe suggestions based on what’s in your refrigerator – capabilities that have already been built for the latest developer version of the company’s smart glasses.

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MacDailyNews Take: Yeah, but do they have Liquid Glass?

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