Currently, AI glasses are still in the early stages of development, but with the increasing industry interest, there is great potential in the vision space.
Finance APP learned that boc international released research reports stating that the recent iteration of AI glasses hardware and software has accelerated. In terms of hardware, baidu released Xiaodu AI Glasses, which is the first AI glasses with a Chinese large model. It is planned to be launched in the first half of 2025. Samsung is also expected to release its first AI glasses in the third quarter of 2025, exploring new features such as scan-to-pay and recognition. In terms of software, Apple's iOS 18.2 version update, Visual Intelligence, is expected to lay the technical foundation and cultivate user habits for future AI glasses by using the mobile camera for recognition. Currently, AI glasses are still in the early stages of development, but with the increasing industry interest, there is great potential in the vision space.
The main points of BOC International are as follows:
Baidu has released Xiaodu AI Glasses, accelerating the progress of large model manufacturers in the glasses field.
On November 12, 2024, Baidu launched Xiaodu AI Glasses equipped with a Chinese large model. The specifications of Xiaodu AI Glasses are as follows: Camera: using a 16 million pixel ultra-wide-angle camera; Acoustic: adopting four precision microphones, open leak-proof speaker design; AI functions: support AI recognition of everything, trial translation, multimodal input to create memos, create ambient playlists, first-person perspective shooting, etc., with potential applications in supervising, diagnosing, medication reminders, smart recipes, immersive preview snapshots, and more; Battery life: supports 56h continuous standby, over 5h continuous listening, 30min full charge; Weight: only 45g; Price: undisclosed; Launch time: first half of 2025.
Samsung is expected to release its first AI glasses next year, accelerating the entry of mobile brand manufacturers into the AI glasses race.
According to exclusive information from WisX XR, Samsung Electronics finalized the AI smart glasses project in early November and will release its first AI glasses in Q3 2025. This AI glasses product will be benchmarked against Meta Rayban; in terms of configuration, it will use the Qualcomm AR1 chip and add an NXP chip for low-power standby and wake-word processing; the camera will be 12 million pixels, using the Sony IMX681, or adding QR code recognition, gesture recognition, human form recognition, and may support new functions such as payment and low-power standby of the camera. The battery is 155mAh; weight is 50g; and is expected to collaborate with Google by incorporating the Google Gemini series large model. The product is scheduled to be released for sale in Q3 2025; with the initial sales volume estimated at 0.5 million units.
Apple's mobile operating system has updated the Visual Intelligence feature, exploring the 'Spatial GPT' centered around the phone's camera, which is expected to provide technology and exploration scenes for AI glasses.
On the iOS 18.2Beta2 version updated on November 5th, the Apple Visual Intelligence feature officially debuted. The feature is mainly achieved through the camera button of the iPhone 16, capturing objects in the physical world with the camera and analyzing the 'depth and useful information' of the object through large models. For example, taking photos of restaurants can provide information such as opening hours, reviews, and menus. Currently, Visual Intelligence is based on mobile-side computational power, able to maintain user privacy within the Apple ecosystem without uploading to external servers.
BOC International believes that Visual Intelligence's broader use case is in AI glasses. By pioneering application on smartphones, Apple can better prepare for AI glasses in terms of technology preparation, scene exploration, and user habit cultivation.
Investment advice
Recently, manufacturers entering the AI glasses market have strong capabilities in software and hardware definition, and are central in the smart phone ecosystem. Their entry will accelerate the trend of the AI glasses industry: on the one hand, it is expected to better improve AI glasses' application scenarios and hardware design, and on the other hand, it will enhance the interaction experience between glasses and mature application ecosystems (such as smart body calling apps), improving the practicality of AI glasses.
AI glasses are expected to become a new hardware terminal from '0 to 1', and it is currently seen that 2025 may be the time when various AI glasses blockbuster products are released. Recommended companies include Goertek Inc. (002241.SZ), Luxshare Precision Industry (002475.SZ), Longqi Technology (603341.SH), Bestechnic (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. (688608.SH), Juxin Technology (688049.SH), Sitech Electric Technology (688213.SH); suggested to pay attention to Tianjian Inc. (301383.SZ), Cosonic Intelligent Technologies (300793.SZ), Rockchip Electronics (603893.SH), Guoguang Electric (002045.SZ), and Doctorglasses Chain (300622.SZ).
Main risks faced by the rating: Price fluctuations of the products; Project production progress falling behind expectations; Downstream demand falling behind expectations.
Macroeconomic downturn risks, slower than expected progress in the commercialization of AI glasses, lower than expected consumer acceptance, and slower than expected progress in the ecosystem integration with smartphones.
