Apple's Smart Glasses to Enter a Rapidly Growing Market

Apple's first smart glasses may launch in a fast-growing market, with worldwide shipments of AI glasses soaring 263% year-over-year in the first half of 2026, according to Counterpoint Research. Display-less products make up a whopping 96% of those shipments. Apple's first smart glasses are said to skip an augmented reality display in favor of audio, cameras, Siri, and seamless connectivity with the iPhone and Apple's broader ecosystem.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman says the company plans to debut the gadget in late 2027. The device could make its debut at WWDC 2027, with a focus on privacy.

Counterpoint predicts that display-less AI glasses will see a 258% jump from the first half of 2025 and a 22% increase from the six months prior. This category includes gadgets like Ray-Ban Meta glasses, which offer photography, audio, calling, and AI capabilities sans screens. Meta currently holds a commanding 94% share of total AI glasses sales, with its shipment volume up 260% year-over-year and 22% sequentially.

This surge can be attributed to new frame styles, wider retail availability, and a spectrum of price points, starting at $299. Display-equipped AI glasses account for just 4% of the market, though shipments in that segment surged 449% year-over-year.

Apple is expected to roll out more sophisticated augmented-reality glasses by 2029 at the earliest. Potential hurdles to sustained growth in this sector include rising semiconductor costs and apprehension over wearable cameras. Despite these hurdles, Counterpoint anticipates investments from Apple, Meta, Google, and Samsung to propel the category towards more proactive glasses that leverage AI to comprehend their surroundings and deliver context-sensitive assistance. Tags: Counterpoint, Meta.