Meta is set to release its first smartwatch with health tracking and built-in Meta AI this year Information.
The smartwatch, which would directly compete with the Apple Watch and other brands, is the result of a revived project that Meta canceled in 2022 due to broader spending cuts at its Reality Labs hardware division.
The original project included plans to release three different camera-equipped watch models, but these do not appear to be part of the company’s future product line. The new watch is codenamed “Malibu 2”.
The smartwatch could arrive alongside Meta’s updated Ray-Ban smart glasses – which could reportedly include facial recognition – and it sounds like it will almost certainly appear before a pair of mixed reality glasses the company is also developing.
Internally codenamed “Pheonix,” the MR glasses have reportedly been delayed until 2027. Meta executives are said to be concerned that launching too many devices in quick succession could confuse customers, hence the delay.
Last year, parent company Facebook launched its Ray-Ban Display AR glasses, which apparently proved so popular that Meta had to delay the international rollout. These glasses use a neural armband for their gestural interface, so it’s possible that new smartwatches could potentially take over these controls.
Meantime, Bloomberg recently announced that Apple is developing competing smart glasses, an AI pin, and AirPods with cameras that will all connect to the iPhone and link to a smarter version of Siri that’s in the works.
Apple is targeting a 2027 launch of the glasses, and the AI pin could arrive in the same year if development continues. The new AirPods could arrive this year.