Meta may be planning to announce its Hypernova AR glasses next week during Meta Connect but the company could eventually face some competition from a formidable rival. According to a report from The Information, Amazon may be developing two different augmented-reality glasses of its own, as it looks to take on Meta.
One set of AR glasses reportedly is being developed specifically for Amazon drivers in order to help them sort and deliver packages. The glasses would have instructions on a display in the glasses which would tell them where to take deliveries.
The other glasses are meant for consumers and codenamed Jayhawk, according to the report. These glasses are supposed to feature a camera, microphones, speakers and a "full-color display" in one of the lenses.
The Information claims Amazon's glasses will feature tech from a company called Meta-Bounds which already helps manufacture the Meizu StarV smart glasses, these haven't left China.
Meta has a chokehold on the smart glasses market with its Ray Ban Meta glasses partnership. In fact, you have forgotten that Amazon has its own Ray Ban-esque specs in the Echo Frame. The Alexa-enabled glasses haven't been updated since 2023.
The Echo Frame and Ray Bans both have a camera, microphone and speakers, but don't have display technology.
Amazon's take on AR glasses could launch in 2026 or early 2027. No word on what the Jayhawk specs could cost at retail.
An intriguing future for smart glasses
It's been more than a decade since Google Glasses failed to take off, but smart glasses have been slowly building steam in the last couple of years. And 2026 could be an inflection point year as more companies try to make a go of it with AR glasses.
Several companies already make AR glasses, and a few have landed on our list of the best smart glasses. These include offerings like the Viture Luma Pro, Xreal One Pro, and the Rokid Air Lite.
Virtual reality headsets like the Meta Quest 3s cover your entire head and attempt to immerse you in a 3D world. AR glasses superimpose screens or images on your surroundings, which, if refined for real life, could give you information as you move around the world. Mostly, they're currently good for spatial computing and watching media or playing games without craning your neck.
Bigger companies are finally getting into the game though. Meta already showed off its prototype Orion glasses during last year's Connect event.
Snap is supposed to launch its fifth-generation Spectacles in 2026, which we've been able to demo throughout this year. Those glasses will come with Google Gemini and OpenAI integration for any number of AI-based apps.
Google is teaming up with Xreal to produce Project Aura, an Android XR-powered pair of glasses that appear to be even better than the Xreal One Pro spectacles. It doesn't have a release date yet.
Samsung is allegedly working on its own Project Haean glasses that could launch this year. Currently, it's unclear whether Haean will be more like the Meta Ray Ban glasses or closer to Xreal's Project Aura. Supposedly, they will feature the Android XR operating system and the Qualcomm AR1 chipset.
That's at least three different major glasses releases that could happen in 2026 before Amazon or Meta even gets their specs out the door. And that's before we even get into whatever Apple is doing with its Apple Glasses that could debut in 2027.
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