Meta has opened a bold new chapter in the story of smart glasses with the debut of the Meta Ray-Ban Display, presented at its annual Connect conference in Silicon Valley. Positioned as both a fashion statement and a technological leap, the eyewear combines artificial intelligence with augmented reality, projecting messages, captions, and even video calls onto a discreet lens.
While unveiling the project, Mark Zuckerberg emphasized that the glasses are designed to keep people present in the world around them while enhancing daily life with personal AI assistance.
A new chapter in wearable tech: the concept behind Meta x Ray-Ban smart glasses
Unlike virtual reality headsets that separate users from their environment, Meta’s approach prioritizes integration. The new Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses provide short, useful interactions—a quick message check, turn-by-turn navigation, or live captions—without requiring a smartphone screen. Their central innovation, the Meta Neural Band, interprets subtle wrist and hand movements to control the glasses seamlessly.
Meta calls this interface a “huge scientific breakthrough,” one that reimagines how humans interact with machines and could soon replace keyboards, touchscreens, and voice commands altogether.
Designs and functions on display
The Meta Neural Band operates on surface electromyography technology, detecting electrical activity from the nervous system. Designed with carbon-coated electrodes woven into Vectran fibers—famously used on NASA’s Mars Rover—it turns micro-movements into commands. This means adjusting music, handwriting a message midair, or silently scrolling a feed is possible with subtle gestures, no phone required.
The glasses themselves carry Ray-Ban’s iconic Wayfarer silhouette, slightly modernized with squared edges, titanium hinges, and transition lenses that adapt from indoor to outdoor light. Inside, a full-color high-resolution display projects visuals that only the wearer can see, maintaining privacy and style in equal measure.
Meta has integrated its AI into the smart glasses, allowing users to translate languages in real time, preview photos and videos, or call friends directly from the lens. Analysts note that the simplicity of this everyday accessory gives it a better chance of mass adoption compared to bulkier VR devices.
The exhibition of everyday futures
What Meta has created with the Meta Ray-Ban Display is more than eyewear—it is a showcase of how personal technology is merging with fashion and lifestyle. From subtle neural gestures to the ability to capture and share life seamlessly, the collection illustrates a vision where accessories become intelligent partners.
The glasses officially launch September 30th at select U.S. retailers, priced at $799 including the Neural Band, with global expansion to follow in early 2026.
