The AI glasses race is heating up with fierce competition, as listed companies chase the trend with "GPT on the nose bridge"

With the rapid development of large model technology and the impressive sales performance of the blockbuster product Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses, AI glasses are set to ignite a new wave of smart glasses in 2024.

As a new blue ocean in the smart wearable market, AI glasses have attracted investments from tech giants such as Apple, Samsung, and Amazon. Domestically, companies like Huawei and Meizu are also actively deploying AI glasses. Recently, Baidu launched the native AI glasses—Xiaodu AI glasses—powered by a Chinese large model, adding fuel to this hot sector. The AI glasses craze is energizing the industry chain, with listed companies preparing to seize the opportunity in this booming market.

In the capital market, the concept of AI glasses has garnered significant attention. Since late September, AI glasses concept stocks have risen consecutively for three months. Recently, these stocks have been particularly active, with multiple stocks, including Zhuoyue Technology, hitting their daily limit.

Despite the enthusiasm, the AI glasses industry may still be on the verge of explosive growth. A report from Western Securities indicates that 2025 is likely to be the year of the AI glasses breakout. According to WellsennXR data and forecasts, starting in 2025, AI smart glasses will rapidly penetrate the traditional glasses market, which is expected to maintain steady growth, with sales reaching approximately 1.4 billion pairs by 2035.

New products from various manufacturers debut, and the “Battle of the Hundred Glasses” begins

The earliest AI glasses trace back to 2012 when Google launched Google Glass. However, due to underwhelming market performance, Google suspended sales of Google Glass consumer version in 2015. Afterwards, Meta collaborated with Ray-Ban in September 2021 to launch the first-generation smart glasses Ray-Ban Stories, but by February 2023, only about 300,000 units had been sold.

In September 2023, Meta and Ray-Ban launched their second-generation product, Meta Ray-Ban, weighing less than 50 grams and starting at $299. After its release, it became a major hit, especially after integrating AI features in April 2024, leading to a sharp increase in sales. According to IDC, Meta Ray-Ban shipped 360,000 units in Q4 2023 and 100,000 units in Q1 2024; by Q2 2024, total shipments exceeded 1 million units.

The popularity of Meta Ray-Ban has ignited market enthusiasm for AI glasses, prompting domestic manufacturers to follow quickly.

In May, Huawei held its summer all-scenario new product launch, officially releasing Huawei Smart Glasses 2 square sunglasses, priced at 2,299 yuan. This product runs on Huawei HarmonyOS 4 and has integrated Huawei’s Pangu AI large model. In August, Hive Technology launched Jiexuan AI audio glasses. In September, Meizu released the AI+AR smart glasses “StarV Air2,” featuring a stylish design and an AI system capable of real-time translation, voice recognition, and intelligent assistant functions.

Since November, domestic manufacturers have been intensively announcing developments related to AI glasses, indicating a fierce “battle.”

First, Baidu announced at the 2024 Baidu World Conference its native AI glasses—Xiaodu AI glasses—featuring first-person shooting, walk-and-ask, object recognition encyclopedia, audiovisual translation, and smart reminders, with a planned market launch in the first half of 2025.

Subsequently, Return Technology released Looktech AI smart glasses on November 16; on November 18, Rokid launched the AI+AR glasses RokidGlasses, integrating Alibaba’s Tongyi Qianwen large model algorithm; on November 20, Shanjike Technology announced it had completed several million yuan in Series A funding, and planned to jointly launch China’s first mass-produced AI shooting glasses with LOHO and iFLYTEK on December 19.

Notably, according to WellsennXR, Samsung Electronics also finalized its AI smart glasses project plan in early November, featuring Google’s Gemini large model, with product release scheduled for Q3 2025.

The AI glasses concept is heating up, and supply chain listed companies are rushing to seize the opportunity

Mobile phone manufacturers and major internet companies are entering the AI glasses market, pushing the sector’s heat to new heights. Meanwhile, listed companies in the supply chain are preparing to capitalize on this trend.

Regarding the composition of AI glasses, the display lenses are undoubtedly critical, involving key industries such as optics, displays, and chips. Among listed companies, Crystal Optoelectronics and Sunny Optical Technology can supply essential optical components like lenses and waveguides; Hengxuan Technology and Rockchip provide SoC chips that enable computation and processing.

Liaode stated on investor platforms that its optical motion capture technology can be used for positioning and 4D gesture tracking accuracy verification in AI glasses, and it has supplied products to multiple domestic and international AR/VR glasses manufacturers.

In sensors, Weir Shares highlighted that its image sensors excel in small size and low power consumption, highly matching the needs of AR, VR, and AI glasses end users. Additionally, its LCOS products, with high resolution, compact form, low power, and low cost, will support emerging markets including AR, VR, and AI glasses in terms of economic feasibility and solution viability.

Companies like Goertek, Luxshare Precision, and Huaqin Technology, with strong capabilities in complete device assembly, have become key manufacturers of smart glasses.

Among traditional eyewear brands, Boshijian began deploying in the smart glasses sector in 2022, establishing partnerships with industry AI glasses brands such as Thunderbird Innovation, Rokid, and Meizu, providing lens fitting and sales channels. In August, Boshijian partnered with Thunderbird Innovation to jointly establish a joint venture. According to Thunderbird Innovation, both parties will collaborate on R&D, sales, marketing, and service of next-generation AI glasses, with the first model expected to launch by late 2024.

Recently, several listed companies have announced their latest AI glasses strategies.

Jingwang Electronics stated that its products—including HDI/Anylayer, flexible and rigid-flex boards, and similar carrier boards—can be applied to AI smart glasses. The company is closely monitoring the trend of terminal intelligence and actively participating in related solution discussions and preliminary research, preparing for future product expansion.

Huanxu Electronics noted that AI glasses demand high levels of thinness, lightness, and unique appearance, and SiP module technology can meet these needs with advantages. Its SiP modules are already used in similar products for clients. Its wireless communication SiP modules are also planned for mass production in 2025, suitable for AI glasses.

Tianjian Co., Ltd. recently stated that it has reserves in open audio and spatial audio technologies, and can produce various electronic products including headphones and smart glasses. The company continues to focus on AI technology development and applications, planning related business layouts based on market demand, internal strategy, and technological needs. Due to confidentiality, it cannot disclose OEM or potential customer details.

“Currently, our company has signed cooperation agreements with multiple domestic and foreign eyewear brands in the AI glasses field. Our products are still in prototype and optimization stages, not yet in mass production. The market is in early development, and consumer habits need cultivation, so there are uncertainties in market expansion,” Yidao Information said.

On November 25, Yingqu Technology stated on the investor platform that it is actively conducting preliminary research on AI glasses products. On November 26, Xingchen Technology announced it has invested R&D resources into AI glasses chips and is engaging with some clients, planning to launch products in 2025. Its low-power technology, accumulated in outdoor security scenarios without network or power, along with industry-leading ISP visual effects and advanced SOC processes, will be applied to AI glasses.

With multiple companies entering the field, AI glasses concept stocks have experienced several surges in the secondary market this year.

In mid-August, AI glasses concept stocks surged, with several hitting daily limits. Boshijian’s stock closed with four consecutive “20CM” limits from August 13 to August 16, increasing over 107% in four days; on August 16, Asia Optical hit four consecutive limit-ups. Since late September, the sector has been rising for three months, with 65 of 68 AI glasses concept stocks from Dongcai increasing in price.

Recently, AI glasses concept stocks have continued to rally. On November 28, Zhuoyue Technology hit its daily limit, closing up 5.28%; Zhongke Lanyun rose over 10%, Mingyue Lens up over 6%, with Boshijian, Yidao Information, Juxin Technology, Hengxuan Technology, and others following suit.

2025 is expected to be the year of the AI glasses explosion

Although many manufacturers are actively deploying AI glasses, industry experts believe that the sector is still on the cusp of explosive growth. Most agree that 2025 could be the breakout year.

According to a report from Bank of China Securities, recent entrants into the AI glasses market possess strong hardware and software definition capabilities and are central to the smartphone ecosystem, which will accelerate the industry trend: on one hand, they can better refine application scenarios and hardware design; on the other, they can enhance interaction with mature application ecosystems (such as intelligent agents and app calls), increasing practicality. AI glasses are expected to evolve into a new hardware terminal from “0 to 1,” with 2025 likely being the key year for major product launches.

“AI glasses are still in early development, but industry enthusiasm is rising, and the potential is large,” the report from Bank of China Securities also noted.

Western Securities believes that with the integration of interactive multimodal large models, the interaction mode of AI glasses is shifting from “hardware serving users” to “large models serving users.” These models can understand voice, images, and other inputs, enabling more efficient and streamlined human-computer interaction, thus increasing user acceptance.

From the supply chain perspective, Everbright Securities states that since current AI smart glasses do not require displays, removing upstream AR optical display and optical components, the upstream technology is mature, and all segments of the domestic industry chain are well-developed. This is expected to lead to a breakthrough moment for AI glasses.

Based on WellsennXR data and forecasts, global glasses sales in 2023 are approximately 1.56 billion pairs; in ten years, sales are projected to reach around 2 billion pairs. Starting in 2025, AI smart glasses will rapidly penetrate the traditional glasses market, which is expected to grow steadily; by 2029, annual sales could reach 55 million pairs; and by 2035, sales may hit 1.4 billion pairs.

However, according to Zhongguancun Online’s analyst Yin Hang, the development of the AI glasses industry faces significant challenges.

“Technologically, as AI applications deepen, the demand for chip performance increases, and the addition of real-time computing and cloud AI calculations makes battery life a new challenge. In terms of comfort, although AI glasses have greatly improved over headsets, there is still room for further enhancement.”

Yin Hang believes that the long-term future of AI glasses depends on technological progress and innovation. Large models play a crucial role, serving as the foundational driver for niche development. Their diversification and hardware optimization directly influence the application ecosystem and user experience. Future AI glasses will need not only powerful local computing but also compatibility with multiple devices, supporting diversified development paths.