At the TED Conference in Vancouver, Google unveiled a sneak peek of its new augmented reality (AR) glasses, which are still in the prototype stage. The demonstration, which took place last week, featured Google’s Android XR head Shahram Izadi and product manager Nishtha Bhatia wearing the glasses while showcasing their capabilities. These smart glasses represent a key part of Google’s vision for the future of computing, aiming to move beyond traditional devices like smartphones and laptops.
The glasses, which currently have no official name, were powered by Google’s Android XR platform. Unlike standalone AR glasses, this prototype relies on a connected smartphone for processing power. The glasses feature small, transparent displays that overlay digital graphics onto the real world, a hallmark of augmented reality. The integration with Google’s Gemini AI enables a variety of impressive features, such as live language translation and real-time object scanning.
During the TED presentation, Izadi demonstrated the glasses’ ability to translate spoken Farsi into English, providing an immediate and fluid display of the translation on the lenses. The glasses were also shown scanning a book, highlighting the potential for AR to seamlessly blend the digital and physical worlds. The seamless integration with Google’s Gemini AI offers further promise, as it brings cutting-edge artificial intelligence capabilities to the wearable device.
Despite the excitement surrounding the technology, Google made it clear that the glasses are still in development and are not expected to hit the market anytime soon. This prototype is part of the company’s broader effort to explore next-generation computing experiences that extend beyond the conventional smartphone.
While the AR glasses showcased at TED 2025 demonstrate exciting potential for the future of augmented reality, Google is taking a cautious approach. As with most emerging technologies, the path to a market-ready product will take time, and consumers should not expect the glasses to be available in the near future. However, the demonstration gives a glimpse into what might be the future of AR and AI-powered devices.
