If you follow Mark Zuckerberg on Facebook, you might have seen him hinting at an Augmented Reality product and other ventures in this domain. While Facebook generates majority of its revenue from digital advertisements (yes, the product ad about something which you were just discussing with your friend and now see on your timeline), it plans to extend its horizon and deep dive into the AR world. In a recent announcement, Zuckerberg talked about their next product which is a pair of smart sunglasses from Ray-Ban.
Facebook’s sunglasses have been in the rumor mill since 2019. Sources claimed that Facebook was working with Ray-Ban owner Luxottica to build an AR eyewear called “Orion” which would replace the modern-day phone by letting you take calls, watch news and even broadcast live streams. The news was somewhat confirmed by Hugo Barra, former VP VR at Facebook’s Reality Labs that their sunglasses would be introduced in 2021 (there’s still 5 months left right?!)
Facebook’s sunglasses hold the gateway to the “metaverse”, the latest buzzword being used by Silicon Valley and entrepreneurs. “The glasses have their iconic form factor, and they let you do some pretty neat things. So I’m excited to get those into people’s hands and to continue to make progress on the journey toward full augmented reality glasses in the future.”, commented the Facebook CEO. With this Facebook will be able to teleport the user between different social platforms using the power of AR and VR.
The biggest concern, according to Zuckerberg, is to try to get as many people in on the digital world as Facebook is there to “serve the people”. For this reason, the devices would be reasonably priced so that everyone can reap the benefits of the digital economy. Along with the sunglasses, a smartwatch with a built-in cellular connection and detachable display is apparently also in talks. We’ll have to wait and see how long it takes for the metaverse to become a reality!