Who would have thought that after the Google Glass debacle a decade ago, the age of AR glasses would be upon us, as two social media titans, Meta and Snap, are rumored to be launching their latest AR frames with some of the most advanced features ever seen

Meta will unveil its long-rumored Orion AR glasses at the Meta Connect event as early as next month, the Verge reports, and with the success of its Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses and Quest line of VR/AR headsets it appears that Meta is poised to launch its first “true” AR glasses; Meta's Orion AR glasses are said to offer a wider field of view and deeper integration of the Meta AI assistant than seen in the Ray-Ban collaboration

Earlier this year, Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth described Meta Orion AR glasses as “some of the most advanced technology on the planet in that space”

“In the realm of consumer electronics,” he continued, “it may be the most advanced thing we have created as a species

But Meta's Orion AR glasses will have to share the stage with another competitor: according to The Verge, Snapchat's parent company also announced at its annual partner summit in Los Angeles a week before Meta Connect's showcase that it will be launching its fifth The company plans to unveil the fifth generation of Snap Spectacles While it is not yet clear what upgrades will be made to the latest model, it is expected that there will continue to be an emphasis on integrating AR technology and new features

But as exciting as these announcements are, remember that the general public will not be getting these AR glasses anytime soon; Snap will continue with last year's approach for Snap Spectacles, focusing on developers and partners, with the goal of producing less than 10,000 units, Production is reportedly planned for fewer than 10,000 units; production of Meta's Orion is said to be even lower, but specific numbers are not yet available; Meta will likely take a similar approach, using this limited release as a test, while increasing publicity, They will likely use this limited release as a test to build publicity while they plan for future commercial releases