Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg calls the augmented reality device the “holy grail” and a priority in the company’s metaverse ambitions.
Leader Meta has built ambitious plans to soon launch an AR glasses. According to The Vergethe team behind the project is working hard to launch the first product in 2024, then continue to improve to make the product lighter in 2026, and the finished version will be available two years later.
Internal sources revealed, Zuckerberg is closely overseeing the development of AR glasses, codenamed Project Nazare. The first version is capable of working independently of a smartphone, supporting communication and interaction with the real environment through three-dimensional images. CEO Meta believes that, over time, the product will give people a more immersive, immersive experience than video calling today.
A Nazare smart glasses idea. Image: Israel Panda
The push for AR is one of the refreshing efforts Facebook. The social network’s reputation has been marred by a series of scandals about privacy, content moderation, and damage to employee morale and their trust in leadership.
Besides, the new glasses are a way to get out of the control of Apple and Google. Both currently offer policies that allow users to control tracking of device IDs – which is a fatal weakness for businesses that specialize in collecting advertising data like Meta.
If AR glasses and related hardware come out, they could open up a new avenue for the company. “Zuckerberg’s ego is tied to glasses. He wants it to be a pioneering device like the iPhone,” said a former Meta employee working in the AR field.
Last October, during the name change event Facebook Fort Meta, Zuckerberg calls the AR device the “holy grail”, playing a role in redefining people’s relationship with technology, like the birth of the smartphone. He thinks that AR and VR will play a role in linking the real world with the virtual world in the metaverse, allowing people to work and play like in the movies. Star Trek. He then puts on VR goggles and fencing with a simulated 3D image. “Don’t be afraid of being stabbed,” the virtual person interacts with Zuckerberg.
Meta is said to have spent billions of dollars on the AR glasses project. However, the source said that employees in the company do not have confidence in this device yet. Some sales predictions if reaching tens of thousands of units for the first version have been successful.
Many other employees are concerned that Meta’s AR glasses will be difficult to access in the future due to the high selling price. The company’s VR Quest model currently costs $ 299, but the AR glasses are expected to cost dozens of times more because the materials to make them alone are more than $ 1,000.
In addition to Nazare, Meta may launch a cheaper AR headset model with the codename Hypernova, expected to be released in 2024. Unlike the Nazare, Hypernova pairs with a phone to display messages and other notifications through a single display. small market.
Nazare products, Hypernova and the next generation of glasses Ray-Ban Stories is expected to achieve good sales. Alex Himel, Meta’s vice president of AR, expects the company to sell “tens of millions” of smart glasses by the end of the decade. Currently, the RayBan Stories glasses model are well-received to a certain extent. According to Meta data, 120,000 pairs of glasses were delivered to customers in the last three months of 2021. However, this is less than half of the expected target of 300,000.
Big bet
To serve the metaverse ambitions, Meta’s AR/VR hardware and software division has continuously increased its staff recently. The business now employs 18,000 people, costing the company $10 billion last year alone.
Mark Zuckerberg fencing with a 3D character in the Meta intro video. Image: Meta
Earlier this year, Zuckerberg said he plans to increase spending on building AR/VR hardware in the coming years, as Meta is under pressure from many sides related to data scandals, stories from ex-employees, restricted by Apple and Google on mobile devices, the number of users is declining, and even fines from management agencies.
Nazare is a project born in 2018 with the original name Orion. Since then, Zuckerberg has shown a particular interest in the project. He claims the first version of Nazare offers a full AR experience with 3D graphics, a large field of view, and a universally acceptable design.
However, experts say that the plan to launch Nazare glasses in 2024 may be difficult to come true. In fact, the device is currently incomplete in terms of design, the operating system and software are not ready, the features are lacking, the battery is not optimized…
Besides the AR glasses, Zuckerberg also aims to create another hardware ecosystem around the device. The company is said to be developing a smart bracelet that can measure electrocardiogram, heart rate, nerve pulse … and then display the data on AR / VR glasses. Some sources say that Meta is also developing the first smartwatch with many new functions, including the ability to interact with smart glasses and will be released this year.
Meanwhile, according to experts, although Zuckerberg has clearly expressed ambitions for the metaverse and AR glasses, it will take more time for this type of device to attract attention.
Bao Lam (according to The Verge)
at Blogtuan.info – Source: vnexpress.net – Read the original article here
