Prime Highlights

Google invests $150 million to develop AI-powered smart glasses jointly with Warby Parker.
The smart glasses will merge Google’s AI with Warby Parker’s trendy glasses designs, aiming to launch after 2025.

Key Facts

Initial $75 million will be used in development, with the next $75 million tied to milestone milestones.
Smart glasses to be equipped with Google’s Gemini AI and Android XR, featuring translation, navigation, and messaging capabilities.

Key Background

In its attempt to re-capture the market share for smart glasses, Google has taken a huge investment of up to $150 million with American eyewear company Warby Parker. The announcement was made at the 2025 Google I/O developers conference, unveiling the partnership as the meeting of Google’s software and artificial intelligence capabilities and Warby Parker’s expertise in optical design.

The alliance will see an initial $75 million invested into the build-up of AI-powered spectacles that can both prescribe and non-prescribe. A subsequent second tranche of $75 million will thereafter follow contingent on meeting specific development milestones. The new-generation spectacles will be founded on Google’s Android XR (extended reality) platform and driven by Gemini, Google’s next-generation AI assistant.

Unlike Google Glass, discontinued in 2023 for reasons of privacy concerns and lack of consumer interest, this new project focuses on fashion, functionality, and functionality. Consumers can expect real-time translation, heads-up navigation, and smart messaging, all within eyewear that is basically ordinary glasses — good-looking and functional. It marks Google’s attempt to address what previous models lacked: good looks and traditional usage.

This initiative also sets Google directly against Meta, whose Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses — developed in collaboration with EssilorLuxottica — are gaining momentum. Google’s collaborations with both Warby Parker and Gentle Monster are an expression of a specific strategy: collaborate with fashion-focused, consumer-led brands to ensure enhanced adoption and penetration into markets. The first product launch from this union is set to make its appearance after 2025, which can possibly reshape the market for intelligent wearables by introducing AI intelligence into partnership with lifestyle-centric design.