Google recently surprised tech enthusiasts by showcasing prototype AR glasses during a TED talk hosted by Shahram Izadi, Google’s head of augmented reality and extended reality.
While the sleek, lightweight glasses impressed with their capabilities, reports suggest we might need to wait until 2026 before they hit the market.
An Impressive Demo
During the demonstration, Izadi showed off several notable features of the prototype glasses:
- Live translation from Farsi to English
- Document scanning using built-in cameras
- A “Memory” feature that helps locate misplaced items
- Integrated display for visual information
What stands out most is how much slimmer these glasses appear compared to other AR prototypes like Meta’s Orion AR specs and Snap’s 5th-generation Spectacles.
According to The Korea Economic Daily, this prototype is Samsung-made under the existing Android XR partnership between Google and Samsung.
The Smartphone Synergy
A key advantage of Google’s approach appears to be the glasses’ relationship with Android phones. As Izadi explained:
These glasses work with your phone, streaming back and forth, allowing the glasses to be very lightweight and access all of your phone apps.
This design strategy likely allows Google to create a more streamlined form factor by offloading heavy processing to the smartphone rather than packing everything into the glasses themselves. The result is a more wearable device that might still deliver impressive performance.
The Competitive Landscape
The AR glasses space is heating up with several major players:
Meta is reportedly gearing up to launch an upgraded version of its Ray-Ban smart glasses later this year, featuring an integrated display. However, these advanced glasses won’t come cheap – they’re rumored to carry a premium price tag of around $1,400.
Meanwhile, Apple is also developing its own AR technology, though according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple’s dedicated glasses might not arrive for several more years.
As an interim solution, Apple appears to be exploring ways to bring AR functionality to its existing product lineup by potentially adding AI cameras to Apple Watch and AirPods, delivering similar capabilities through these familiar devices.
Project Moohan: The Bigger Brother
While the glasses enable a daily-wear approach to AR, Google and Samsung are also collaborating on “Project Moohan,” an Android XR headset. This device was visible in the background of Izadi’s presentation, showing the size difference between the two form factors. It was also shown off to a great reception at the MWC 2025 event in Barcelona.
The headset appears to be a more comprehensive XR solution, potentially competing with devices like Apple’s Vision Pro, while the glasses offer a more practical, everyday approach to augmented reality.
Good Things Come to Those Who Wait
Although waiting until 2026 might seem disappointing for those eager to try Google and Samsung’s AR glasses, the extra development time could result in a more refined product.
The apparent strategy of creating lightweight glasses that work with your existing smartphone could also lead to a more affordable entry point into AR technology compared to standalone devices.
For now, we’ll have to content ourselves with these early glimpses while Google and Samsung continue refining their approach to the emerging AR glasses market.
Given how promising the prototype already looks, these glasses might be worth the wait – assuming competitors don’t capture the market in the meantime!
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