Facebook and EssilorLuxottica have announced a multi-year collaboration to develop the next generation of smart glasses. The announcement was made by Mark Zuckerberg during Facebook Connect, an annual conference held virtually from California.
The partnership will combine Facebook’s apps and technologies, Luxottica’s category leadership and Essilor’s iconic brands and advanced lens technology to help people stay connected with their friends and family. The first product will be branded Ray-Ban, the world’s most popular eyewear brand, and will launch in 2021. It will combine the best of both worlds – innovative technology and trendy style – to create smart glasses that consumers will love.
“We are passionate about exploring devices that can offer people better ways to connect with those closest to them. Wearables have the potential to do that. With EssilorLuxottica we have an equally ambitious partner who will lend their experience and catalog of world-class brands to the first truly stylish smart glasses, ”said Andrew Bosworth, Vice President of Facebook Reality Labs.
“We are particularly proud of our partnership with Facebook, which projects an iconic brand like Ray-Ban into an increasingly digital and social future. By combining a brand loved and worn by millions of consumers around the world with technology that has brought the world closer, we can reset expectations about wearables. We are paving the way for a new generation of products destined to change the way we look at the world ”, commented Rocco Basilico, Luxottica’s Chief Wearables Officer.
–
