Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon told CNBC that the chip designer is working with Samsung and Google to explore a set of mixed-reality glasses that connect to a smartphone — taking a different approach than Apple, which released a larger handset.
Last year, Google, Samsung and Qualcomm formed a partnership to develop mixed reality technology. This refers to the combination of augmented and virtual reality, often involving digital images superimposed on the real world in front of you.
Amon’s comments are among the first to shed light on the project.
“It’s going to be a new product, it’s going to be new experiences,” Amon said, discussing what will come of the mixed reality collaboration.
“But what I really hope to come out of this partnership is I want everyone with a phone to buy companion glasses,” Amon added.
Samsung and Google were not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC.
The CEO referred to Facebook parent Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses, which look like regular shades but connect wirelessly to a smartphone and have a built-in camera. Additionally, they have a voice assistant powered by Meta’s Llama AI model.
Qualcomm has also made mixed reality a key focus as it diversifies its business beyond smartphones. The company has a chip called Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1 designed for smart glasses.
Qualcomm has touted the fact that its various chips in smartphones and computers allow AI applications to run on the device, rather than being processed in the cloud over the Internet.
“AI is going to run on the device. It’s going to run in the cloud. It’s going to run some on the glass, some on the phone, but at the end of the day, there will be completely new experiences,” Amon said.
Smaller market
Virtual and augmented reality headsets are still a smaller market than smartphones. International Data Corporation expects 9.7 million VR and AR headsets to ship this year – well below the forecast of 1.23 billion smartphones.
Common complaints with AR and VR devices, which until now have usually been bulky headsets, are that they are not convenient and sometimes uncomfortable to wear. A set of smart glasses could solve that, bringing a stylish device to the mixed reality market.
Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses are powered by a Qualcomm chip. Qualcomm, Samsung and Google are working on smart glasses, according to Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon.
Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
“I think we need to get to the point where the glasses are no different than wearing regular glasses or sunglasses. And then with that, we can get scales,” Amon said.
Smart glasses from Google, Samsung and Qualcomm would take a different approach Apple’s Vision Pro, a mixed reality headset released this year that wears on the user’s head and can be controlled with gestures.
Details about the project involving the three players are still sparse. In an interview with CNBC this year, TM Roh, head of Samsung’s mobile division, said the company will announce a new “mixed reality platform” later this year. This is likely to be a software product, according to Roh, although he declined to elaborate at the time.