What to Expect From Meta Connect 2024

Meta’s large Connect showcase is slated for Wednesday, September 25. We expect to perceive much astir Meta’s caller AR/VR headsets and glasses, which could beryllium your caller gateway into alleged “spatial computing” without spending thousands of dollars connected an Apple Vision Pro.

CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s favored Horizon Labs part has regularly burned done billions of dollars processing upcoming mixed world hardware. The blank cheque Meta offered its VR developers is reportedly being rolled back, though that doesn’t mean we won’t spot absorbing headsets and wearables astatine its adjacent dev conference. Connect volition beryllium afloat of caller AI enhancements and their transportation to Meta’s hardware slate. The large question is whether we’ll spot immoderate 3rd enactment headsets sporting Horizon OS marque a debut arsenic well.

What’s Next for Meta’s AR/VR Hardware Slate?

The large uncover whitethorn beryllium a existent brace of AR glasses, arsenic Zuckerberg hinted astatine successful a station connected Threads earlier this year. We person a fewer leaked images for the codenamed “Orion” astute glasses, though we suspect, based connected reports from The Information, that the glasses volition person a projector connected the right-hand lens. They whitethorn besides beryllium alternatively dense for a emblematic brace of sunglasses, oregon astatine slightest heftier than the existent and amazingly fashionable Meta Ray-Bans. 

On September 17, Ray-Bans proprietor EssilorLuxottica declared they would proceed their concern shipping branded astute glasses. The timing whitethorn bespeak Meta plans to stock an update connected its Ray-Bans, though caller reports indicated Google was besides courting the planetary eyewear company. Either way, Meta volition astir apt beryllium keen to speech up its AI chatbot integrations into Ray-Bans and Orion.

The different large hardware announcement volition apt beryllium a Meta Quest 3S. The “lite” headset concisely appeared successful the Quest Store earlier being taken offline. Zuckerberg’s institution reportedly canned its planned Meta Quest Pro 2, a sequel to the archetypal Meta Quest Pro that didn’t drawback connected astir arsenic good arsenic the Quest 3. This 3S headset whitethorn beryllium a fewer 100 bucks cheaper than the $500 Quest 3. The tradeoff is Meta could perchance bounds its passthrough capabilities.

Though determination haven’t been immoderate rumors to constituent to, we’d beryllium funny to spot if immoderate of the planned 3rd-party headsets marque a debut astatine Connect 2024. Earlier this year, Meta opened up its Android-based Horizon OS for abstracted OEMs to headsets. According to Zuckerberg, Asus and Lenovo are supposedly crafting their ain headsets. Meta is hedging connected a much unfastened ecosystem to gully much radical into VR. Compare that to Apple’s walled plot with its Vision headsets. The newcomer to the “spatial” marketplace is reportedly readying to merchandise a cheaper headset by 2026.

What About AI astatine Meta Connect 2024?

Meta’s societal media projects continue to instrumentality heat for their consistent role successful the fraught U.S. election. We won’t person to perceive done the company’s next steps for Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp, and Threads since Meta’s existent hopes remainder connected hardware and AI. We’ll apt perceive a just spot astir immoderate of Meta’s ongoing AI projects, specified arsenic the adjacent signifier of its Llama ample connection model. The company’s AI representation generator was lambasted for struggling to depict Asian men with achromatic women, but that doesn’t mean we won’t spot much astir the company’s image, video, and substance models.

The engineers astatine Menlo Park person already debuted respective AI bundle suites, specified arsenic the AI Studio for creating customized AI chatbots without needing to larn to code. The thought down this is for influencers to make chatbots to speech to fans for them. It’s a surreal and dystopic imaginativeness of societal media, to beryllium sure.

How to Stream Meta Connect 2024

Meta Connect volition aerial Sept. 25 and 26 from the signifier astatine the company’s office successful Menlo Park, California. Meta volition (hopefully) uncover nonstop timing for the lawsuit by adjacent week. You tin ticker it via Facebook or, if you’re all-in connected Meta’s vision, done the Horizon Worlds app connected a Meta Quest headset.