The Facebook company Meta wants to make its AI mobile with a gadget in Tamagotchi format. The device shown by Mark Zuckerberg at the Meta Connect conference has a small touchscreen that can be used to control it like a smartphone. Unlike a cell phone, however, it is not intended to enable phone calls or video calls. Instead, it's entirely tailored to access Meta's AI software.
According to information from the dpa news agency, the gadget, dubbed Muse Charm, has a microphone, two cameras and an internet connection via 5G mobile networks.
Zuckerberg didn't reveal much more about the device. It's not quite finished yet, the Meta boss said, and some materials and components still need to be determined. Nevertheless, he announced that he wanted to bring Muse Charm onto the market in time for the Christmas season. He did not provide any information about how much the AI gadget would cost or in which countries it would be offered.
Meta released its AI assistant Muse, which is tailored to everyday life and forms the basis for Charm, in the USA just a few weeks ago. It is not yet available in Germany. Muse should be able to relieve users of everyday tasks such as shopping and even carry out banking transactions.
Another attack on Apple and Google
The presentation of the Muse Charm is a renewed attack on the dominance of Apple and Google's operating systems in the smartphone business. In recent years, Meta had tried in vain to establish a new computer platform for the future with glasses for virtual reality (VR), among other things. However, the smartphone continues to prove to be the dominant everyday computer. The new Apple boss John Ternus recently made it clear when presenting new iPhone models that the company continues to see its mobile phones as a mainstay of everyday digital life.
With the Charm, Meta is taking the lead in attempts to bring to market a device that can access AI services without having to take a smartphone out of your pocket or wear AI glasses. It was previously known that ChatGPT developer OpenAI was working on such a product. The AI company brought former Apple chief designer Jony Ive on board for this purpose. Ive helped shape the look and functionality of the iPhone, iPad and other devices.
“Creeping past” the competition
Meta has managed to “sneak past” rivals like OpenAI, comments industry analyst Avi Greengart from the consulting firm Techsponential. In the foreseeable future, no device will replace the smartphone. »But can it be supplemented? Absolutely!” Meta has the problem that many people distrust the company when it comes to data protection, says Greengart, but that would not affect the success of its products.
“We take this very seriously”
However, AI glasses that Zuckerberg's company developed in cooperation with the eyewear brands Ray-Ban and Oakley are currently very controversial. The background to the excitement is that some users use the glasses to secretly take photos and videos of women, which they then distribute on the Internet without the women's consent.
Meta's top manager in charge, Alex Himel, told the dpa that his company is taking action against such misuse of AI glasses: "We take it very seriously." All glasses in which the LED light, which is supposed to signal to people around them that a recording is in progress, has been manipulated, have been switched off. It was less than 0.1 percent of the devices.
Meta also scans platforms like Instagram and Facebook to find videos with secretly made recordings, Himel explained: "And then we not only delete the content, but also block the accounts."
Meta is also trying to make it more widely known that the light on the front of the glasses indicates that a camera is running, the manager says: "We want people to know that." From Meta's point of view, the display on its glasses is more clearly visible than on other types of devices that can also be used to take pictures, such as smartphones.
AI glasses without a camera
In order to counteract the controversy, Meta is now bringing a variant of its AI glasses onto the market that does not have a camera. With prices starting at 349 euros, the device called Ray-Ban Meta Audio is 100 euros cheaper than the variants with a camera. It should also have largely the same AI functions and be suitable for making phone calls and listening to music.
Because there is no camera, you won't be able to ask the AI, for example, which building you are currently looking at. That being said, the cameras that can be activated using voice commands have so far been an important selling point for Meta's glasses. And the question arises as to whether bystanders would even recognize that these are cameraless glasses. This is difficult to assess from the outside.
In Germany, Meta is now also bringing its Meta Ray-Ban display onto the market. It differs from the company's other smart glasses in that there is a small display in one of the lenses that can be used to display information in the field of vision. The device has been available in the USA for almost a year, and in Germany it will be available from October 13th for 899 euros.
Counterpart to Apple's Vision Pro
At the same time, Meta is not giving up on its glasses for virtual reality (VR). A new model is scheduled to come onto the market in the spring that is lighter and significantly thinner than competitors' devices. The Meta VR Glasses only weigh 100 grams. In comparison, even the most compact VR headsets to date seem bulky.
In addition, Metas VR Glasses have the shape of ordinary glasses. Instead of glasses, you have displays in front of your eyes that can create a seemingly huge image. The low weight is achieved, among other things, by moving the computer that feeds the displays with data into an external device the shape and size of a power bank. It is connected to the glasses by cable.
With the VR Glasses, Meta is in direct competition with Apple's Vision Pro, which is more in the format of heavy ski goggles with an aluminum frame. Just like the Apple glasses, Meta's model should also be suitable for watching films and series. But there is also talk of 3D sports broadcasts and use as a PC monitor. The new glasses are also suitable for playing VR games like “Beat Saber,” as Meta manager Andrew Bosworth showed at Meta Connect.
At the launch, Mark Zuckerberg emphasized that his VR glasses were significantly lighter than the Vision Pro. In the USA, the new VR glasses will cost $1,299, while Apple sells its device from $3,699. However, at a demonstration in California, the image quality of the Meta glasses appeared slightly worse than the Vision Pro, which could be due to the lower resolution of their screens. The gadget should be available in Germany from spring 2027. Meta has not yet announced a price in euros.
