Stealth augmented reality startup Viture is working on new AI-powered glasses

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Meta is about to get some new competition in the augmented reality smart glasses space: a little-known company called Vonderful Inc. is gearing up. To launch the first pair of artificial intelligence glasses at CES, according to a staged website that appears to have been published prematurely and Recent FCC filing.

Operating under the Vonder brand, the company promises to make “the most advanced smart glasses ever” by combining augmented reality with “real-time information and assistance powered by advanced artificial intelligence.”

It’s a tall order, especially since Meta just launched the $799 Ray-Ban Display glasses, arguably the industry’s most consumer-ready AI glasses with a built-in display yet. But Vonderful is not starting from scratch: Vonder appears to be a hidden project Vitoran augmented reality startup that has been manufacturing glasses since 2021.

The connection was disclosed in Vonder’s FCC filings, which were provided by a Viture employee identified as a “project manager” for Vonder. What’s more, a Landing page As for Vonder, complete with a countdown timer that suggests a launch at the beginning of 2026, it’s hosted on Viture’s servers. and A trademark of Vonder It was introduced by Eden Future HK Limited, which was It has been identified in Chinese media As the owner of Viture.

Viture did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Viture is among a few companies with Chinese roots that makes mask-shaped glasses that plug into your phone or computer for power and computing, then essentially mirror those screens using an AR overlay. These types of devices typically use what’s known as “birdbath” optics, which involves an array of mirrors to layer images on top of your view of the real world — a bulky approach that can’t compete with the more advanced waveguide displays used by devices like Meta’s Ray-Ban Display glasses.

Basically, these glasses can be a good solution if you want a secondary screen for your phone, laptop, or portable gaming console, but you wouldn’t want to walk down the street with them, unless you’re okay with always having a cable dangling next to you connecting your phone to your glasses. Without onboard computing, AI functionality is also limited to whatever your phone has to offer.

Viture released its first such visor in 2022 and doubled the product category with several new models this summer. In addition to the glasses themselves, Viture also sells Neck ring Which contains the computing necessary to operate the glasses without connecting them to the phone, while providing some gesture control through the built-in cameras.

I couldn’t find out the exact specifications for Viture’s upcoming Vonder glasses — the FCC filing was heavily redacted — but a source with some insight into the company’s plans told me that the device may ditch the birdbath optics for more advanced display technology.

The recording reveals that the device uses Bluetooth technology, which indicates a standalone device that does not connect to your phone. The absence of Wi-Fi also suggests that the glasses may not have a camera, as Bluetooth alone isn’t fast enough to stream real-time video or download large amounts of photos. However, my source indicated that a camera-equipped version may be present at some point as well.

Viture isn’t the only AR startup looking to expand from visor-style glasses with birdbath optics to more integrated integrated devices. Viture Rokid competitor I recently completed a Kickstarter campaign For its own smart glasses, which feature monochrome displays in both lenses. The company too Just revealed A set of screenless glasses that more closely mimic Meta’s popular Ray-Ban smart glasses. And TCL subsidiary RayNeo I fired the first pair of standalone augmented reality glasses in 2024. This device is currently sold out, indicating that the launch of an updated version may be imminent.

It may seem difficult for any of these companies to compete with a giant like Meta, which has spent tens of billions of dollars on augmented reality and virtual reality so far. However, it is still early days for this product category, and there may be partnership opportunities for some device makers in the future. Case in point: Xreal, another Viture competitor, Collaborated with Google To make the first set of glasses powered by Android XR.
Viture has a few things that could help launch its new Vonder brand: The company already has a retail partnership with Best Buy, with its glasses available in 200 stores. Viture also recently It raised $100 million in finance, with the express goal of expanding into retail and “next generation innovation, evolving hardware and software ecosystems with AI-powered XR.”