This week, just days after Apple’s WWDC announcement, Meta officially unveiled the dates for its Connect event. Moreover, Meta introduced LlamaCon, a separate event highlighting the firm’s ongoing AI innovations and projects.
In an official statement, Meta said:
Last year was an eventful one with the introduction of Meta Horizon OS, the launch of Meta Quest 3S, and the expansion of Meta AI—and 2025 is shaping up to be another banger.
Meta Connect will take place on September 17 – 18. It will feature updates to the Quest portfolio, AI smart glasses projects, the Horizon platform, and developer news.
However, Llamacon will take place later this month, on April 29th! The event will focus on Meta’s recent AI developments, “following the unprecedented growth and momentum of our open source Llama collection of models and tools,” Meta proclaimed in its press release.
The AI space is evolving rapidly, and with Meta poised to invest more in the market, the firm will look to land with impact as it claims a stake in the fast-paced environment.
Likewise with its XR investment, interestingly, the Connect announcement comes just moments after Apple’s WWDC announcement. As reported at CES 2025, Apple is working closely with NVIDIA, so the Vision Pro could potentially get some fuel put into its engine as the device enters its second year on the market.
Additionally, with Samsung looking to make a big splash in the headset market, Meta might be looking to react with a big statement at this year’s Connect event.
Meta’s Year of Innovation
It is safe to say Meta followers can expect some big announcements this year. Last year brought further life to Orion, so it’s fair to say Meta may try to top that this year. Interestingly, Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth exclaimed that 2025 will be significant and “the most critical year in my 8 years at Reality Labs.”
Bosworth also recently stated how Meta looks to prove how its Quest hardware portfolio stacks up to the Visoin Pro. He added:
Since Apple leaned so hard into marketing mixed reality features for the Apple Vision Pro, we wanted to make sure people were aware that Quest 3 in particular was as good as, or in my opinion better than, what they get elsewhere. We found out through market research, which we do, that this was a key thing.
Speaking on the metaverse and Horizon Worlds, Boz explained that the service’s mobile application “absolutely has to break out for our long-term plans to have a chance. ” also remarking:
If you don’t feel the weight of history on you, then you aren’t paying attention. This year likely determines whether this entire effort will go down as the work of visionaries or a legendary misadventure-We haven’t actually made a dent in the world yet.
Additionally, Meta Vice Presidents Mark Rabkin and Alex Himel recently spoke on how AR smart glasses will be the next stage of mobile computing, explaining some of the hurdles and requirements facing broader adoption.
Himel said:
When we talk about augmented reality, we talk about looking at the physical world and seeing digital stuff on top of that, whether that’s digital television instead of having to buy a real one, whether that’s a virtual picture frame on your desk, and we showed that it was possible – which I think is a major milestone.
The VPs clearly outline how Meta sees AR smart glasses as the next step of mobile computing, evolving forward from smartphones. Himel said the emerging device category is “fundamentally” attempting to connect users with one another.
“If you go to use the [AR] device and you can’t connect with one of the most important people to you, then I think we failed at the job,” Himel added.
The air is filled with anticipation regarding Meta’s next big moves, with Connect’s dates Confirmed some big news can be assured.
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