Facebook (Nasdaq: FB) has recently filed a patent for augmented-reality smart glasses. Augmented reality is expected to be a feature on the iPhone 12, so it could indicate a looming competition with Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) for this market. Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) was the first to launch a smart glasses product with Google Glass a few years ago which flopped due to a lack of features and glitches.
Patent Filing
Despite Google Glass' failure, many tech companies are working on wearable technology products. 5G internet with its faster speeds could create a number of new uses for the product, especially once developers start playing around with the tech and build apps on top of it. Facebook recently filed a patent which shows that its smart glasses with "subvocalized speech recognition". In its patent filing, it said that it hopes the glasses can replace devices so people can be more present.
The filing shows a number of sensors on the glasses with one near the ears that supposedly can detect changes in brain activity. In the same way that a smartphone is responsive to different gestures, the glasses product would be responsive to changes in thought. The patent filing for the glasses also shows more conventional features like a built-in camera and microphone on the frames, the lens which doubles as a display, and some control buttons on the sides.
Facebook's Future
Facebook bought Oculus, a virtual reality company, in 2014 for $2.3 billion. It also made a deal with Plessey, an augmented reality company whose tech is integral to this patent, and it reportedly beat out Apple. While Apple seems to be focused on augmented reality through its smartphone, Facebook seems to be diversifying its bets with virtual reality through Oculus, this augmented reality glasses product and reportedly developing open-source operating systems for VR or AR.
Facebook missed out on the smartphone, hardware race, which makes it dependent on Google and Apple. It seems determined to be part of the hardware in the next iteration of devices. One key feature for these devices is microLED which is brighter and more powerful than today's LED screens. Also unlike LED, they work just as well in sunlight. Apple is opening a new factory dedicated towards microLED production and these are expected to become standard for new Apple products which is expected to include headsets or glasses.
Conclusion
There's an ongoing battle between major tech companies across a number of vectors. However, a new front is emerging with wearable technology, virtual reality, and augmented reality. One lesson from the past decade is that there are only going to be a handful of winners. Apple generates the bulk of profits on devices. Google owns search, Facebook owns social, and Amazon owns e-commerce. It's likely that these new market segments will be winner-take-all as well. Due to not having its own hardware, Facebook is at a disadvantage, so it's compensating with its aggressiveness and diversified bets.