Samsung Electronics is challenging Meta's dominance in the smart glasses market with a camera-equipped device designed to deliver artificial intelligence agent capabilities through seamless smartphone integration.
Kim Yong-je, Executive Vice President of Samsung Electronics' MX Division, revealed detailed specifications of the smart glasses in an interview with CNBC released on the 6th (local time). The interview was conducted at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2026 in Barcelona, Spain.
Kim emphasized that the device's camera is positioned at the user's eye level as a key differentiating feature. "What's important is that AI understands where the user is looking, transmits that information to the smartphone, and the smartphone processes it to provide extensive information," he explained.
Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses currently dominate the global market with an 82% share. Samsung, which has been developing mixed reality hardware with Qualcomm and Google since 2023, is now focusing on smart glasses following last year's Galaxy XR headset launch. China's Alibaba released the budget-priced "Quark AI" in November last year, and Apple is expected to launch Siri-equipped smart glasses next year.
"XR headsets will continue to exist, but they're unlikely to become a large-scale business," Kim said. "Everyone is talking about what the next-generation AI device will be. Glasses are one of them, and it's an area everyone is watching."
Industry observers note that glasses have stronger consumer appeal than headsets due to their smaller size and mainstream acceptance. Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon expressed optimism, stating that proximity to users' eyes, ears, and mouth "will enable agentic AI experiences—AI that autonomously performs tasks on behalf of users."
However, Kim remained cautious about whether the device would include a built-in display. "If users need a display, there are other Samsung products like smartwatches or smartphones," he said. "This year's goal is to release something for the industry."
This suggests Samsung's first smart glasses may be an audio-based device without a display, similar to Meta's first and second-generation Ray-Ban models.