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ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Magic Leap extended its partnership with Google.
- The companies showed a prototype of AR/AI smart glasses.
- The collaboration merges strong features from each company.
Magic Leap plans to bring its over 15 years of experience in the AR space to the booming AI smart glasses market through a continued partnership with Google XR.
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On Wednesday, Magic Leap published a blog post detailing its plan for its next-generation AR glasses. In its collaboration with Google, the company said that it is focused on developing AR glasses prototypes that “balance visual quality, comfort, and manufacturability.”
A prototype showing the progress made by the two companies in developing the AR glasses was on display at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) stage. The glasses maintained the standard look of black-rimmed glasses, similar to those of the Meta Ray-Ban Wayfarers or the Android XR glasses prototype shown at Google I/O.
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“What makes this prototype stand out is how natural it feels to look through,” said Shahram Izadi, VP/GM of Google XR. “Magic Leap’s precision in optics and waveguide design gives the display a level of clarity and stability that’s rare in AR today.”
In particular, the company plans to combine Magic Leap’s waveguides — the company’s technology that allows for the realistic and precise overlay of digital content on the physical world around you — with Google’s Raxium microLED light engine, which refers to display technology that is smaller, brighter, and lower-power, and ideal for in-lens smartglasses displays.
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The companies first announced a multi-faceted, strategic technology partnership in May 2024, although their relationship precedes that. A major part of today’s announcement was the extension of their collaboration through a three-year agreement. No additional information was shared regarding the roadmap or a potential release date.
