Global AI Glasses Shipments Jump 263% in First Half of 2026 as Meta Tightens Grip

Display-less devices, a category that includes the Ray-Ban Meta AI Glasses, accounted for 96 percent of all AI glasses shipped in the period. Shipments in that segment rose 258 percent year over year and 22 percent compared with the second half of 2025, Counterpoint said.

Meta held 94 percent of display-less AI glasses shipments in the first half of 2026, the research firm said. The company's own volumes rose 260 percent year over year, lifted by new Ray-Ban variants, expansion into more countries, retail promotions and lower-priced Meta-branded glasses.

Glasses with an actual AR display remain a small share of the total, but their shipments grew faster than those of display-less models, jumping 449 percent year over year from a low base. Rokid led the category with a 41 percent share, ahead of Meta at 37 percent, while China accounted for 45 percent of shipments. Counterpoint attributed China's early lead in part to a more established component supply chain there.

Counterpoint flagged rising component costs and growing public concern over cameras and privacy as potential near-term headwinds for the industry. Component costs have been a persistent issue across much of the technology sector, while privacy questions have surfaced as smart glasses have moved closer to the mainstream. Meta's recent difficulty with the recording indicator on its glasses is one example, including a loophole that allowed users to cover the LED after recording had already begun.

Counterpoint does not expect those issues to halt the broader growth of AI glasses. It predicts more form factors designed to avoid the camera question altogether, including camera-free AI audio glasses built around microphones rather than image sensors. A report published last week suggests Meta is considering such a pair, according to Android Authority.