Meta prepares camera-free smart glasses as 'perv glasses' complaints persist
Meta has developed a camera-free smart glasses model called Luna, The Information reports, as the company faces complaints that its camera-equipped frames are invasive. The model may debut at Meta Connect next week.
The new model, which The Information reports is called Luna, drops the integrated camera and instead pairs six built-in microphones with a button on the side of the frame. Pressing the button activates the company's AI system, and the microphones let users talk to Meta's AI chatbot as well as to Muse, described as its AI consumer agent.
The Information reported that Luna could be unveiled as soon as Meta Connect, the company's developer event, which takes place next week. TechCrunch reached out to Meta for more information. Meta has not publicly confirmed the product or the timing.
Meta's camera-equipped glasses have sold better than competing devices from other entrants into the smart glasses market, but they have also drawn unease from consumers who regard the built-in cameras as an invasive emblem of a surveillance society. Those complaints are the backdrop to the camera-free model.
The broader smart glasses business has expanded over the past few years, with Meta positioned near the front of the field. The category still faces persistent questions about usability, cost and privacy, and many consumers remain unsure how, why or whether to use the devices. Meta's Reality Labs, the division responsible for developing its smart glasses line, continues to lose what the company's April earnings report described as a substantial amount of money.