Tech showcase season rolls on, and next up is Meta — where CEO Mark Zuckerberg is doubling down on AI-powered smart glasses. With the company’s keynote approaching, expectations are high for updates on new glasses, upcoming headsets, and Meta’s broader vision for contextual AI.
Here’s a full breakdown of what to look for at Wednesday’s Meta Connect event.
Hypernova
Multiple outlets report that Meta is preparing to unveil a new set of smart glasses codenamed Hypernova. Unlike Meta’s Orion or Ray-Ban smart glasses, Hypernova aims for a middle ground: a small display in the right lens, controlled by hand gestures through a wristband.
That wristband uses surface electromyography (sEMG), and Meta is especially bullish on its potential. As for the display, Hypernova won’t deliver full AR like Orion is expected to. Instead, it focuses on utility — showing the time, weather, and notifications, framing and previewing photos, providing turn-by-turn navigation, and even offering captions or translations of real-world speech. Meta AI responses can also be surfaced as text, rather than audio.
UploadVR obtained a leaked image of the glasses, which appear noticeably bulkier than the Ray-Ban line. CNBC reports that Meta is targeting a price point of around $800.
New Ray Ban and Oakley Metas
Rumors suggest that the success of the Ray-Ban Metas has pushed Meta and partner EssilorLuxottica to speed up development on a next-generation model. The Ray-Ban line has proven to be a hit, selling over 2 million units as of February 2025. According to The Information, the follow-up models — codenamed Aperol and Bellini — are slated for a 2026 release. These new editions are expected to push deeper into AI features, including facial recognition and continuous AI sessions that run in the background.
Meanwhile, Meta’s Oakley partnership has been gaining momentum. The HTSN Limited Editions were well received, offering 3K video recording and double the battery life of previous models. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reports that Oakley is exploring a smart take on its classic Sphaera frame, complete with a center-mounted camera. Marketing for the line leans heavily toward athletes and cyclists, suggesting Oakley sees fitness and performance as the sweet spot for this tech.
All quiet on the Meta Quest front
And what about the Meta Quest? For now, smart glasses are clearly stealing the spotlight. Meta did roll out the Quest 3S, a lower-cost model that still delivers solid performance, but don’t expect any big news on a Quest 4. Most outlets, including UploadVR and Mark Gurman, say it’s not happening at this year’s event.
That doesn’t mean Meta’s standing still. UploadVR reports that the company is working on an ultralight headset planned for 2026, designed to offload computing power to a separate puck running Horizon OS. There’s also chatter about an ASUS ROG-branded headset built on Horizon OS, though that reveal may be held for ASUS’s own showcase rather than Meta Connect.
