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Years from now, I will look back on 2025 as the year a fundamental shift occurred in wearable technology. Over the past decade, this category has become synonymous with health and fitness. In many ways, this connection is still the primary one. But this year, I’ve seen a growing number of tech companies offering another path for wearables: as AI vehicles.
The clearest example of this is what was known as smart glasses. During CES Last January, it became clear that the unexpected success of Meta’s Ray-Ban eyewear was beginning to catch on. At the show, the floor was filled with audio-only glasses and viewing glasses that promised a future of immersive, hands-free computing. But companies also started correcting my terminology. “Can you stop calling them smart glasses?” They would ask in person and via email. “we Think of them as artificial intelligence glasses.”
I first heard this term from Meta. I thought it was just a marketing thing. After all, smart glasses are smart glasses — a technology gadget in the mainstream consciousness due in large part to Google Glass Fall Year A decade ago. But no. Glance at any of Meta’s eyewear marketing, and you’ll see them calling Amnesty International glasses. Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, said he believes in glasses To be the ideal form factor for artificial intelligence. Not only do you have a pair of secret speakers on your face, but you can also take photos and ask the AI questions about the world around you.
Rebranding smart glasses as AI glasses isn’t limited to Meta. When I recently showed off the latest Android XR features, Google told me that it also differentiates between AI glasses and XR headphones and a third category in between. According to Google, the AI glasses are lightweight and stylish, and interacting with Gemini is the main attraction. Something like this Hala ProjectAlthough they are shaped like glasses, they are more like a headset. But no matter how much you want to debate the semantics, the clear narrative is that AI is the killer application that will unlock this category.
Beyond glasses, another type of wearable is emerging: pendants and pins that are always listening. there Bees AIwhich was recently acquired by Amazon, and friendan AI-powered necklace with a controversial ad campaign for the New York City subway. there NotePin Anthem and No limitsAnd many of the startups in my inbox offer similar tools. Hell, there even is AI smart ring You can whisper voice memos into it. The general idea here is a device that accompanies you throughout the day, and uses artificial intelligence to summarize your meetings, voice notes, and conversations. Some offer to-do lists based on your day. Buddy markets itself as an always-on companion who sends you messages periodically about things happening around you.
What I always come back to is A The conversation I had in August With Sandeep Warraich, Google product manager for Pixel Wearables. He described wearable devices as “the only device in our computing lives that is guaranteed to be on the body.” Meaning: You can put your phone (and its built-in AI assistant) away. For AI assistants to work best, they have to know a lot about you — which means they have to be with you everyone the time. There’s no better way to have AI with you 24/7 than inside a tool designed for life on You?
It’s unsettling for me to witness, but “wearables” are increasingly synonymous with “artificial intelligence.” As long as tech companies look to wearables as an ideal vehicle for AI, I don’t see this trend going away anytime soon.