According to the Zhichuang Finance APP, Minsheng Securities has released a research report stating that, according to a report by 36kr holdings, Xiaomi is expected to launch AI glasses in Q2 2025, fully targeting Meta Ray-Ban, featuring AI functions, audio headphone/camera modules. According to Wellsen XR Research, Samsung is expected to release its first AI smart glasses in Q3 2025, equipped with AR1 and supporting the Gemini model, with an initial production plan of 0.5 million units. AI empowerment accelerates the rise of smart terminals, drawing parallels with the evolution of the smartphone industry, and a bullish outlook for the future dual-line parallel market structure. Brand manufacturers develop their own hardware + large models; white label manufacturers will adopt off-the-shelf solutions combined with third-party models, each occupying their target markets.

The main points of the Minsheng Securities report are as follows:

At the beginning of the overseas AI application wave, what distinguishes AI terminals: Initially, there is significant differentiation in the U.S. stock technology sector, and the trend of switching between software and hardware is quite evident.

Minsheng Securities believes that commercial scenarios on the B-end are relatively straightforward, with training datasets being simpler, and similar tracks having replicable scenarios. Thus, AI applications in the U.S. stock market are led by ToB, while the A-share AI terminals focus on ToC. Among these, there are excellent examples like Ray-Ban & Meta glasses, which come with cameras that can capture, recognize, and translate, interacting with users' voice; sales of the second-generation product, equipped with the Llama model, are rapidly growing. Also, there are products with relatively bland user experiences, such as Ola bean bag headphones, which have only sold over 3000 units since launch at the flagship store, capable only of basic dialogue without invoking system features or supporting third-party apps. Ultimately, the product sales depend on the users' actual experience, as AI terminals need to deeply cultivate application scenarios to address user needs. Not all terminals can sell well just by being labeled with the name AI or featuring AI functions.

What is worth looking forward to: organizing the rhythm of new AI glasses releases, there are quite a few new products worth anticipating.

These can be divided into two categories: AR brands and mobile phone manufacturers: AR brands: On November 18, Rokid released new products, which besides common features like AI photography and recognition, also collaborated with Alipay to implement a function for camera scanning and payment through natural language. On November 29, Yingmu released two models of AI + AR smart glasses: INMO AIR3 and INMO GO2. Mobile phone manufacturers: According to 36kr holdings, Xiaomi is expected to launch AI glasses in Q2 2025, fully targeting Meta Ray-Ban, featuring AI functions, audio headphone/camera modules. According to Wellsen XR Research, Samsung is expected to release its first AI smart glasses in Q3 2025, equipped with AR1 and supporting the Gemini model, with an initial production plan of 0.5 million units.

SoC is the core hardware that affects the AI terminal experience: in the 2C scenario, "universality + cost-effective" is the main logic.

The AI terminal hardware for 2C will not serve as computing power terminals; it only needs to meet certain targeted end-side demands. Therefore, SoC solutions must primarily address core issues such as low power consumption, connectivity capabilities, and chip processing power. Taking AI glasses as an example, there are currently three mainstream SOC solutions: Qualcomm XR, AR series chips; watch solutions transplanted; SOC + external ISP solutions. In the 2B scenario, computing inference power reigns supreme, with multi-core heterogeneous (CPU + GPU + NPU) becoming the mainstream solution.

What is the outlook for AI terminals:

Value enhancement: Compared to earlier consumer electronics innovations, such as TWS headphones, AI terminals are system-level products that need to accommodate various applications + AI large models + diverse interaction methods. The product form upgrade and evolution follows a gradual iterative process. However, the advantage is that once the user experience is mature and provides convenient solutions to essential needs, the willingness to pay among users increases. The pricing of AI terminals = hardware costs + AI experience, which carries higher added value and can unlock profit ceilings for brand manufacturers.

Interactive experience: Currently, AI terminal products, from early models like Zhizhu and Honor smartphones to recent Rokid glasses, primarily feature voice interaction to free up users' hands. In the future, they will also integrate gesture recognition and other functions to further innovate the interactive experience. Minsheng Securities believes that the positioning of mobile phones will shift towards personal computing power terminals, and their interactive process can be realized more through AI hardware. That is: ① Achieving 'what you see is what you get' through the AI glasses camera; ② Achieving 'what you say is what you do' through the microphone.

Industry chain ecology: Minsheng Securities believes that the current AI terminals can be likened to smartphones from ten years ago. Between 2012 and 2015, the rollout of 4G communication created new demands like mobile internet. The four traditional domestic smartphone champions, "China Cool Union," faced challenges from new "players" like OPPO, Vivo, and Xiaomi, leading to an accelerated reshuffle of the industry. Subsequently, as brands like Nokia, LeEco, and Gionee exited the market, the industry structure began to stabilize. Presently, AI empowerment is accelerating the rise of intelligent terminals, analogous to the evolution of the smartphone industry's landscape, with a bullish outlook on future dual-line parallel market patterns. That is brand manufacturers developing their own hardware + large models; white-label manufacturers adopting generic solutions combined with third-party models, each occupying their target markets.

Investment suggestions: The rise of AI large models has once again sparked a new wave of intelligent terminal innovation. Not only are there phenomenon-level products from Ray-Ban & Meta, but many hardware manufacturers like Samsung, Xiaomi, and Apple are also poised for action. The catalysts for the release of the aforementioned new products are dense and will continue to be monitored.

Specifically regarding the symbol, attention is recommended to be focused on:

1) Brands: Xiaomi Group (01810), Edifier Technology (002351.SZ), Guoguang Electric (002045.SZ), Yidao Information (001314.SZ), etc.; 2) OEM: Goertek Inc. (002241.SZ), Tianjian Co., Ltd (301383.SZ); 3) SOC: Bestechnic (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. (688608.SH), Rockchip Electronics (603893.SH), Amlogic (688099.SH), Espressif Systems (688018.SH); 4) Optics: Sunny Optical (02382), Zhejiang Crystal-optech (002273.SZ), Zhejiang Lante Optics (688127.SH), Dongguan Yutong Optical Technology (300790.SZ); 5) Acoustics: Memsensing Microsystems(Suzhou, China) Co., Ltd. (688286.SH), Gettop Acoustic (002655.SZ); 6) Eyeglasses: Doctorglasses Chain (300622.SZ).

Risk warning: The AR optical solution updates fall short of expectations, innovation is below expectations, sales are below expectations, and exchange rates fluctuate.