At the Connect 2024 event, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg unveiled a prototype of the Orion augmented reality glasses, formerly known as Project Nazare. During their development, several breakthrough technologies of the company’s Reality Labs were used.

Orion glasses are equipped with an augmented reality display, providing a field of view of about 70 degrees, the largest in this form factor. Their lenses are made of silicon carbide, not glass, which makes them lightweight. Meta also uses uLED projectors, which are ultra-small and extremely energy-efficient. The company built seven tiny cameras and sensors into Orion’s magnesium frames.

The glasses support voice control and gaze control for data input, as well as a new way to track hands using the EMG wristband. It tracks brain signals for instant data sharing.

Instead of ready-made processors, Meta developed its own highly specialized chip. It is extremely power efficient and optimized for AI algorithms, machine perception and graphics. Hand and eye tracking and simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) technology typically require hundreds of milliwatts of power and generate a lot of heat. Meta has reduced power consumption to a few tens of milliwatts, thereby reducing heat generation.

To make Orion wireless and small, the company created a wireless computing puck with two processors. One provides the computing power needed for low-latency graphics rendering, AI, and advanced machine perception. For a smoother experience, the glasses will run all the hand-tracking, eye-tracking, SLAM, and specialized graphics algorithms of the AR world, while the puck will run the app’s logic.

The glasses support calls with 3D avatars, games, movies, and even the browser, as well as simultaneous language translation. They weigh only 100 g.

Orion will remain a prototype for now. Meta will select testers from among its employees and an external audience. The company plans to create a line of consumer augmented reality glasses, but first it needs to improve the display quality, optimize the form factor to make it even smaller, and find ways to produce the glasses at an affordable price.

Meta also presented the Quest 3S mixed reality headset. It is a cross between Quest 2 and Quest 3, and the price of the device is $300.

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