Meta Aria Gen 2 smart glasses were unveiled on Thursday. The research-focused wearable device is the successor to Project Aria, which was launched in 2020. The second generation of the artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) focused device arrives with upgrades to existing sensors and addition of a couple of new sensors. The Menlo Park-based tech giant has also improved the battery life of the device. The Aria Gen 2 glasses will be available to partners in the coming months.
In a blog post, the tech giant announced the Aria Gen 2 glasses. It is not a retail product like the Ray-Ban Meta Glasses. Instead, this device is aimed at researchers and Meta’s partners to enable them to develop new technologies. The company stated that the second generation of the wearable will help advance research in areas including machine perception, egocentric and contextual AI, as well as robotics.
The project primarily focuses on solving machine perception issues that act as bottlenecks for augmented reality (AR) glasses today. The company has partnered with companies such as BMW, as well as universities including Carnegie Mellon, IIIT Hyderabad, and the University of Bristol. Meta is also onboarding new research partners.
Project Aria, the predecessor to the current generation of smart glasses, arrived with a display. That has now been removed with Meta Aria Gen 2. The new device weighs 75g and has foldable arms for portability.
Apart from this one major omission, the wearable gains several upgrades. The existing suite of sensors has been upgraded. These include an RGB camera, Six Degrees of Freedom Simultaneous Localisation and Mapping (6DOF SLAM) cameras, eye tracking cameras, spatial microphones, Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs), barometer, magnetometer, and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS).
Additionally, the Aria Gen 2 also gets two new sensors in the nosepad — a Photoplethysmography (PPG) sensor for measuring heart rate and a contact microphone that distinguishes the wearer’s voice from those of bystanders.
Meta also highlighted that the second generation of the wearables arrive with on-device processing capabilities for several machine perception systems including SLAM, eye tracking, hand tracking, and speech recognition. This is being powered by undisclosed custom silicon by the company. The tech giant has also improved the battery backup of the device and claims that users will get six to eight hours of continuous usage.
