Meta Introduces Live AI, Translations, and Shazam for Ray-Ban Smart Glasses

Meta unveils new features for Ray-Ban smart glasses, including live AI, live translations, and Shazam support.

Meta just dropped some fresh updates for their Ray-Ban smart glasses, and honestly, they’re pretty slick. We’re talking live AI chit-chat, real-time language translations, and—because who hasn’t been stumped by a catchy tune—Shazam integration. Right now, the live AI and translation goodies are VIP perks for Meta’s Early Access Program folks, but Shazam? That’s up for grabs for all users in the US and Canada. No secret handshake required.

Imagine this: you’re wandering the grocery store, eyeballing some avocados, and boom—your glasses suggest a killer guacamole recipe. That’s the live AI feature for you, letting you gab with Meta’s AI assistant while it checks out what you’re seeing. Just a heads-up, though: it’s a bit of a battery hog, capping out at around 30 minutes on a full charge. So maybe save the deep convos for when you’re near an outlet.

Then there’s live translation, which is basically like having a tiny UN interpreter in your glasses. It flips between English and Spanish, French, or Italian on the fly. You can listen through the glasses or sneak a peek at the transcript on your phone. But here’s the catch: you’ve gotta prep your language pairs beforehand and tell the glasses who’s speaking what. A small price to pay for feeling like a globetrotting polyglot, right?

Shazam’s the easy one. Hear a song, ask the Meta AI, and presto—you’re no longer that person humming ‘you know, the one that goes like this…’ It’s all part of the v11 software update for the glasses, and you’ll need the v196 Meta View app to get in on the action.

This isn’t just about cool features, though. It’s part of Big Tech’s big bet on AI assistants as the heart and soul of smart glasses. Meta’s CTO, Andrew Bosworth, is all in, saying 2024’s the year AI glasses finally come into their own. Maybe he’s onto something—after all, what’s more AI-native than whispering to your glasses like some high-tech wizard?