Roughly a dozen years after the polarizing debut of Google Glass, the search giant is officially getting back into the smart glasses game—but this time, the focus isn’t on putting a smartphone on your face. It’s now all about Gemini, its powerful AI model users and developers have been raving about since the most recent update, and making that assistant the center of your experience as you go about your daily life.
During “The Android Show: XR Edition” event on Monday, Google confirmed its first wave of AI-powered eyewear, developed in partnership with fashion-forward brands Gentle Monster and Warby Parker, is slated for release in 2026. The move pits Google directly against its Silicon Valley rivals, Meta and Apple, in the race to win your face.
Google outlined two different approaches to the smart glasses form factor. The first pair will be “screen-free assistance” glasses: lightweight frames that ditch heads-up displays in favor of built-in speakers, microphones, and cameras. According to Google, these will “let you use your camera and microphone to ask Gemini questions about your surroundings” and “remember what’s important.” Basically: They’re glasses you can talk to, and talk back, but don’t do anything fancy with the displays.
