World prospects desperate to get their arms on Meta’s newest wearable tech – Ray-Ban Show glasses and Neural Band – might have to attend longer.
The social media big on Tuesday, January 6, stated that it’s delaying the launch of the AI-powered sensible glasses in worldwide markets as a result of stock constraints and “unprecedented” demand in the USA.
The corporate stated that it’s hitting pause on preliminary plans to roll out the sensible glasses in nations similar to the UK, France, Italy, and Canada this 12 months. Citing restricted stock, Meta stated that it’s prioritising orders from US prospects as a substitute.
First launched in September 2025, the $799 Meta Ray-Ban Show glasses is the corporate’s first consumer-ready AI product that lets customers watch movies and reply to messages via a wristband powered by neural know-how.
The glasses have been developed in partnership with Ray-Ban maker EssilorLuxottica as a part of a deal that was first made in 2019 and was renewed in 2024. Because of the partnership with Meta, EssilorLuxottica reported that its income grew within the third quarter in October 2025.
“Meta Ray-Ban Show is a first-of-its-kind product with extraordinarily restricted stock. Since launching final fall, we’ve seen an amazing quantity of curiosity, and consequently, product waitlists now lengthen effectively into 2026,” Meta stated in a weblog put up on Tuesday.
Whereas Meta’s glasses have gained traction by way of recognition and demand, it isn’t the one tech big betting that AI-powered sensible glasses might be the subsequent large platform shift after smartphones. Google demoed its first-ever Android XR-powered sensible glasses eventually 12 months’s I/O developer convention. It additionally introduced a $150 million partnership with Warby Parker, a US-based producer and retailer of eyewear merchandise. OpenAI can also be reportedly working with Apple on growing AI-powered sensible glasses.
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New options coming to Ray-Ban Show
At CES 2026, Meta introduced a number of new capabilities coming to its Ray-Ban Show glasses, together with a brand new characteristic that lets customers ship ready remarks in private {and professional} settings with a discreet teleprompter embedded within the glasses show.
Customers have to easily copy and paste their notes from Google Docs or some other notes app to make use of the teleprompter characteristic. The Meta Neural Band additionally lets customers swipe via customisable text-based playing cards at their very own velocity. The teleprompter characteristic will likely be rolled out in a phased method, as per the corporate.
Teleprompter on Meta Ray-Ban Show. (Picture: Meta)
One other new characteristic coming to Ray-Ban Show is EMG Handwriting, which lets customers who’re sporting the Neural Band kind messages on WhatsApp and Messenger by writing with their finger on any floor. For now, the characteristic will solely be restricted to Early Entry prospects within the US with help for English solely.
Meta additional stated it’s rolling out its pedestrian navigation characteristic in 4 new cities within the US, bringing the full to 32 cities. Moreover, the corporate is working with smartwatch model Garmin on a brand new automotive OEM proof of idea “that connects Meta Neural Band with Garmin’s Unified Cabin suite of in-vehicle know-how options for infotainment.”
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“Within the demo, passengers can play video games and navigate the Unified Cabin UI, scrolling to pick an app and pinching to launch it. That is made doable by the wristband’s floor EMG know-how, which senses quite a lot of gestures made utilizing the thumb, index, and center fingers,” it stated.
Garmin Unified Cabin: A Proof of Idea for Subsequent-Era EMG Automotive Enter. (Picture: Meta)
Meta additionally stated it’s working with the College of Utah to evaluate how its Neural Band could be improved for individuals with completely different ranges of hand mobility.