Google gives first glimpse of new AI glasses ahead of fall launch

Google Vice President of Android XR Shahram Izadi speaks during the keynote address at Google I/O on May 19, 2026 in Mountain View, California.

Benjamin Fanjoy | Getty Images

Google gave a first look at its first audio smart glasses on Tuesday, as the company tries to crack a corner of the wearables market where rival Meta has been making waves.

At Google's annual I/O conference, the company said it partnered with Samsung and eyewear makers Gentle Monster and Warby Parker for glasses that will embed the Gemini assistant. They'll be compatible with Android and iOS devices and available later this year, Google said.

"These are the first two designs of a bigger collection coming this fall," said Shahram Izadi, head of Android XR products and platform, in a keynote at the developers conference. The glasses are meant to provide information "spoken into your ear privately, rather than shown in a display," he said.

Google unveiled the glasses alongside a number of AI announcements, including new AI models and AI agents, at Tuesday's event.

The reveal shows Google's willingness to place calculated bets on new devices at a time when the future of wearables remains uncertain and investors await new possible form factors for the AI era. Google announced smart display glasses last year, and said in December it was working on audio-only glasses on for its Android XR platform. 

For Google, the user data is the source of the real value is, as it can be used to improve AI models. The company didn't talk about privacy terms related to the forthcoming glasses.

Google Product Manager Nishtha Bhatia stands during the keynote address at Google I/O on May 19, 2026 in Mountain View, California.

Benjamin Fanjoy | Getty Images

Within AI eyewear, Meta has experienced early success with its smart glasses in partnership with EssilorLuxottica, a bright spot for a company that's been burning billions of dollars a quarter on its Reality Labs unit. The Ray-Ban and Oakley glasses, which use Meta's AI digital assistant, sold 7 million units in 2025.

In September, Meta released its own display glasses, allowing users to see features like messages, photo previews and live captions through a small display that's built into one of the device's lenses.

Apple is also reportedly working on several frame styles and a camera design for its first smart glasses. Other companies like Snap and Alibaba have been making their own AI glasses.

At Google's conference on Tuesday, product manager Nishtha Bhatia performed a demo, using the audio sunglasses to launch Gemini, connect to DoorDash and order a coffee. She also had Gemini read a summary of unread text messages and add an event to her calendar. 

Google said in its blog post that the glasses can give turn-by-turn directions for navigation and allow users to ask Gemini about anything they see. They can also take photos and use Google's AI image generator Nano Banana to "transform images" with prompts like, "Hey Google, take a picture and put everyone in funny hats."

WATCH: Google's chief AI architect lays out AI strategy