Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook) is in advanced negotiations to acquire a roughly 5% stake in EssilorLuxottica, valued at around 4.33-4.5 billion euros or several billion dollars. A deal will strengthen a partnership for developing Ray-Ban smart glasses and ensure exclusivity in design and distribution for Meta's future products in the wearable tech and metaverse market.
Meta is working with Morgan Stanley on the deal. EssilorLuxottica and Meta have not commented on the potential deal.
The potential deal could give Meta further control over the roadmap for smart glasses, a cutting-edge gadget based on augmented- and mixed-reality technologies that tech giants like Apple are investing in. Market analysts are optimistic about the growth potential of Ray-Ban smart glasses.
Meta is focusing on developing wearable AI devices, including Ray-Ban smart glasses with heads-up display and wristband control. The company is also developing Orion, AR glasses with holographic display, and has restructured its Reality Labs into Metaverse and Wearables divisions.
Meta has previously collaborated with EssilorLuxottica to release two generations of Ray-Ban smart glasses, and the investment could provide EssilorLuxottica with a financial boost to alleviate pressures like global inflation and rising costs affecting profit margins.
Google is reportedly in talks with EssilorLuxottica about integrating its Gemini AI assistant into future smart glasses, potentially competing with Meta's partnership, suggesting Google is departing from its previous strategy of building its own XR hardware.
There are speculations about Google acquiring more shares of EssilorLuxottica for greater bargaining and control power in their collaboration.
Recent trends suggest smart glasses sales volume may increase to millions of units in the coming years, driven by the potential for AI assistants and the integration of core functionalities like voice interaction, audio output, and image capture.
Sources: The Verge, Times of India, Benzinga, Economic Times, DigiTimes, TechEdt, ZOL, Social Media Today, Sina, Ifeng, ExBulletin, PYMNTS, Inshorts, Udaipur Kiran, Meridiana Notizie, TradingView, MarketScreener, Business AM, Nordot.
This article was written in collaboration with Generative AI news company Alchemiq.
