The rumors about Apple joining the smart glasses market have been swirling and increasing over the past few years. According to a recent report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the company could unveil its spectacles as soon as next June at WWDC and go on sale at the end of 2027.
Apple’s smart glasses are being developed by the teams behind the Apple Vision hardware and other Apple team members. Apparently, the reason why they’re not available sooner is Apple wants to nail user privacy—since it’s always been a huge emphasis for the company. More specifically, Apple’s narrowing down its privacy and messaging features. The company isn’t going to speedrun rushing into these features, especially when Meta’s Ray-Bans are under scrutiny and a class-action lawsuit for their ability to secretly take photos and videos.
The company is also looking to focus on on-device processing and skip out on facial recognition and always-on recording features. The report also suggests Apple’s smart glasses could arrive with or without a camera, with the camera-enabled version not being for photos or videos but for sensing. The latter feature is anticipated to be inside Apple’s upcoming AI-powered AirPods.
