Apple is reportedly narrowing down its Vision line for smart glasses, and Meta’s lead is more important than ever
Last year, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo published a Vision product roadmap with seven devices. Now, he has released a new one with just two products left.
The change in the product roadmap, Kuo claims, was approved by John Ternus, Apple’s CEO, who officially takes over on September 1, 2026.
What did Apple cut and what survived?
According to Kuo’s updated analysis (via X), only two of the seven products survived, and Apple canceled five of them.
Of the two, one is a pair of AI smart glasses that directly compete with the Meta Ray-Ban system, and the other is a display-equipped pair of AR glasses that use optical waveguides (to overlay visual content onto the real world).
AI glasses are expected in 2027, and AR glasses won’t arrive until 2029 (at the earliest). Everything else, including plans to replace the Vision Pro, and the lighter Vision Air, are gone.
Apple’s decision, Kuo explains, puts forward “the most powerful smart glasses on the market,” and I couldn’t agree more, but the timing may not be right.
What makes smart glasses a better bet than mixed reality headsets?
According to a Counterpoint Research report published in February 2026, global shipments of smart glasses grew by 139% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2025.
Meta, the company behind the world’s most popular AI smart glasses, leads the market with its robust lineup (including the Meta Ray-Ban Display) and consistent release of AI-based features.
It held an 82% market share at the same time, thanks to its global presence, strong collaboration with established optical products, and hardware supported by intuitive software features.
The company has single-handedly demonstrated market power, and is expected to grow continuously in the coming years. It’s clear that Apple wants a piece of the market, but Meta’s early years and experience could work against the Cupertino giant.
Is Apple running out of time in the race for smart glasses?
Every month Apple spends redesigning its roadmap is a month Meta spends selling, iterating, and building the retail infrastructure that makes smart glasses feel mainstream.
More worryingly, the company’s smart glasses may not ship until the end of 2027, giving Meta at least another year and a half to come up with new products, refine its features, and strengthen its position.
Apple believes it can come in late and still win on product, design, and seamless iPhone integration, the same playbook that worked against the smartwatch giants in 2015. However, that means the company’s first AI glasses should be as good or better than any Meta shipping at the time.
In my opinion, the Vision Pro was more of a platform bet than a consumer product, and Ternus’ decision to cancel its successor is an admission that the strategy didn’t pay off at the pace Apple had hoped. The question isn’t whether redirecting those resources to smart glasses is the right move; whether Apple is too late.
