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It’s as if Google is trying to make its way through a crowded room to be the center of attention.
Google I/Othe company’s annual developer conference, is just a week away — and tech experts expect there will be announcements about new ones Artificial intelligence featuresAnd integrations and devices that can change our daily lives.
Google revealed it this week at its virtual Android Show: I/O Edition event Android 17, Google Books (a new type of Chromebook) and updates for Gemini and Android Auto. But there’s still a lot for Google to show off at I/O on May 19 and 20, including… Android XR smart glasses –And more Amnesty International.
Google I/O is the first in a series of developer events over the coming weeks Apple’s WWDC conference Microsoft is scheduled to launch at the beginning of June. We’ve all heard tech companies talk about dominating AI, and getting deep into it Wearable devices And create ecosystems where all their devices work together seamlessly. The I/O conference gives Google the opportunity to get ahead of its competitors by showcasing the latest advances in artificial intelligence — and the personal devices designed to power them. But with a crowded market and trust issues, how can Google do that? truly Wow us?
There are two key developments to look for at Google I/O that may answer this question: Smart glasses and Amnesty International agent.
Watch this: Google I/O 2026: New Gemini, smart glasses, and an all-new laptop operating system. Here’s what to expect
What will Google add to the smart glasses market?
Google may unveil its smart glasses at Google I/O next week.
Google is expected to launch for the first time its Android XR smart glasses that operate with artificial intelligence, to compete with its own smart glasses. Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses. Google first teased the return of smart glasses at its key I/O conference in 2024 (remember Google Glass?). Last year, the company A Gemini powered prototype versionwhich Abrar Al-Hiti, CNET’s chief technology correspondent, tested at Mobile World Congress. Al-Hiti was particularly impressed by the Google Maps demo, which provides directions based on an image she saw through the glasses, as well as the ability to look at a vinyl album cover and ask Jiminy to play a song from it.
It sounds great, but are Gemini-powered smart glasses the ones you’ll want to wear all day, every day, as Google hopes? Considering that Meta already dominates the smart glasses space, that’s a tall order.
Earlier this year, Counterpoint Research reported that Smart glasses market growth by 139% On an annual basis in the second half of 2025, compared to 2024. This growth is due to Meta smart glasses. Counterpoint Research told CNET that the smart glasses market is still in its early stage, but Meta currently leads the market in both smart glasses and… Virtual reality headsets. Keep in mind that Apple targets the same market with its products Vision ProThere are speculations about the brand’s smart glasses as well. But Google has the advantage.
“Both companies (Meta and Apple) currently adopt (a) relatively closed OS strategy, while Google takes an open platform approach. Google’s advantage lies in its Android OEM ecosystem and broader options,” said Flora Tang, principal analyst at Counterpoint Research. This gives Google an opportunity to expand its ecosystem with partners and use Gemini across devices. Despite the feature, Google has to get some functionality right for developers and consumers.
Tang pointed to several steps Google needs to take to compete with Meta. The company needs to offer low-latency AI experiences that represent meaningful advances (minimizing the lag between prompt and AI response). Google needs to expand on the integrations it demonstrated last week for Android 17, including having useful workflows across devices and addressing the growing security and privacy concerns that have grown with smart glasses over the past two years. If Google wants to dominate the market, its smart glasses will need support iOS – Just like Mita does.
Although Android
“The popularity of smart glasses has taken a hit recently, as a new class-action lawsuit against Meta raises important privacy questions,” says El-Chedrawy. “And even though Google is not a Meta company, it still needs to work hard to reassure people that its Android XR glasses and any potential AI integrations are useful, not scary.”
What’s in store for Gemini?
Hopefully, Google’s agent AI plans will be based on specific use cases.
It seems so twin It’s everywhere Google is, from search to Android devices, apps, and features. It was previously designed as generative AI, but Google is diving into agentic AI with Agentic Vision Gemini flash 3 Through the “Think, Act, Observe” episode. But this may be just the beginning.
Al-Shadrawi expects agentic AI to be a big focus of attention at Google I/O. We’ve seen how Google uses Gemini AI agents in Android 17But she predicts we could see other forms of AI, as happened at last year’s Google I/O conference, which launched the AI video race. However, we’re past the initial awe, so Al-Shadrawi is looking for practical, meaningful AI applications that make our lives easier.
“Technology companies have decided that agentic AI is the future of AI development, and Google is helping to lead the charge,” says Al-Shadrawi. “I fully expect that we will hear Google talk about agentic AI at I/O.”
El-Chedrawy says she hopes Google’s AI stays focused on specific use cases, arguing that AI designed to do everything can also be abused more easily — even if it’s actually useful in many situations. One big development might be a programming tool to compete with Codex Alimentarius and Claude Code For software development and technology companies. We’ve already gotten a glimpse of this in Gemini Flash 3, where the model can generate and execute Python code to parse and modify images in its query. For everyday use, agentic AI requires us to trust an AI-powered chatbot, but nearly half of US adults are not fans of AI.
that NBC News poll It was found that nearly half (46%) of Americans view artificial intelligence negatively. AI even ranked less favorably than political topics, including US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, President Donald Trump, and former Vice President Kamala Harris.
“A lot of agent AI requires you to put your trust in what is essentially an AI robot. This may be fine for menial tasks, but if we want to use AI agents for more important tasks — especially shopping and handing off purchasing decisions to the AI — we need strict safety safeguards,” says El-Chedrawi.
We’ll have to wait and see what Google announces at I/O and what developers think, but in the meantime, between Gemini’s new chat capabilities, Google’s cutting-edge vision for smart glasses and its latest health-focused AI efforts, the company is clearly outlining where it sees the future heading.