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Since the first appearance of modern smart glasses – “extended reality” or “XR” specs that incorporate AI, cameras, microphones and other such trickery – it feels like we’ve been hearing rumblings of Samsung trying its hand at the format.
Now, at Google I/O 2026, Samsung and Google have officially announced the upcoming release of their collaborative “intelligent eyewear”, combining Samsung’s hardware with Google’s AI. This announcement notably comes ahead of the rumoured reveal of Apple’s own smart glasses, rumoured to be unveiled this September.
We have no official name for the Samsung smart glasses but, given how often the press release refers to the expansion of the Galaxy ecosystem, I’d say it’s a safe bet that Galaxy will feature in there somewhere. Samsung Galaxy Glasses feels a likely, if rather uninspired name. You’d think that Google would have warned Samsung to stay well away from the “Glass” name.
It’s not just Google that Samsung is collaborating with on this project, however. For all of Samsung’s hardware expertise and Google’s AI know-how, neither can claim to be known entities in the eyewear fashion industry. And that’s where Gentle Monster and Warby Parker come into the picture.
Just as Meta partnered with Ray-Ban to produce its first smart glasses and then added Oakley into the mix with the likes of the Meta Vanguard, Samsung, too, has bowed to the superior knowledge of established eyewear brands and had them handle the aesthetics. The fact that I, an aggressively unfashionable millennial, have never heard of either brand feels like a solid endorsement for their respective cultural cachet.
To start with, there will be two styles of Samsung Galaxy Glasses (as they’ll probably be called), one from each brand. The Gentle Monster pair are elliptical-shaped and have tinted lenses – they look similar to the brand’s Crepe 01 sunglasses.
The Warby Parker pair are graduates of an older school, somewhere in the ballpark of Buddy Holly. The lenses are clear and the frame is black plastic – the closest current style that I could find was the Ainsley.
Both styles feature two forward-facing cameras, one at the crest of each arm, which allow you to snap photos without taking your phone out of your pocket, as well as giving Google’s Gemini AI a viewpoint to translate text on menus and signs in your line of sight.
Gemini can also translate audio in real-time, apparently delivering the translated speech in a tone that broadly matches the speaker’s voice. I’m dubious that this will be any good to start with but, learning as these things do, it may improve over time if you hold multiple bilingual conversations with the same person.
Otherwise, the AI does all of the usual smart assistant jobs, feeding navigation directions into the speakers in each arm, summarising texts, adding events to your calendar, suggesting potential stops along your walking route and even placing orders for you. The goal, as stated in the press release, is to keep users “hands-free and heads-up”.
We have no word on price just yet but I’d expect them to be competitive with Ray-Ban Meta glasses – Gen 2 models start around £379. As for a release date, Samsung has only stated a broad target of launching this Autumn, although more information is promised in the coming months. So check back in with us soon for a full run-down of the specs’ specs.
