Samsung Explores New AI Wearables, Like Earrings, Necklaces

Entrepreneur

5 days ago

A Samsung executive confirmed this week that the company is working on smart glasses, with plans to expand to other types of wearable devices.
A Samsung executive revealed that the company is looking into a new line of AI wearable devices that double as jewelry, including AI necklaces and earrings.
Samsung's chief operating officer for mobile, Won-joon Choi, told CNN this week that the company is actively exploring a category of AI devices that "you don't need to carry," and can instead wear on your person.
Related: Samsung's Newest Galaxy Gadget Aims To See 'How Productive You Can Be'
"So it could be something that you wear, glasses, earrings, watches, rings, and sometimes a necklace," he explained to the outlet. Samsung is "looking at all kinds of possibilities," he said.
Samsung's exploration may not result in products that it brings to market. Tech companies often create prototypes of products that never hit store shelves.
Samsung's approach is to introduce devices that supplement phones instead of replacing them, a strategy it employed with its smartwatches and $399 smart ring, according to Choi. The company released a new smartwatch on Wednesday, the Galaxy Watch 8, which is the first smartwatch embedded with Google's Gemini AI. The $299 watch touts advanced fitness tracking, sleep coaching, and stress monitoring.
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 8. Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Samsung isn't the only company to recently signal a push into AI devices. Earlier this week, OpenAI closed a $6.5 billion deal to buy io, an AI devices startup co-founded by former Apple designer Jony Ive. The acquisition, the largest yet from OpenAI, brought over io's 55-person team of engineers, designers, and researchers to OpenAI to work on wearable devices infused with ChatGPT.
Meanwhile, Meta has experienced unexpected success with its Ray-Ban Meta AI smart glasses, which have sold over two million pairs since their October 2023 launch. The glasses allow users to ask questions to Meta AI, take pictures and videos, and answer calls.
Last month, Meta introduced a waterproof pair of AI smart glasses geared towards athletes, the Oakley Meta glasses, and is reportedly working on another pair of glasses under the Prada brand. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg also previewed a prototype of glasses that project 3D avatars of people, or holograms, at the Meta Connect event in September.
Related: Meta Invests Billions in World's Largest Eyewear Company After Ray-Ban Smart Glasses Success
Other tech companies are following Meta into the smart glasses space. Google stated in May that it was dedicating $150 million to developing AI glasses with Warby Parker, with the new glasses to arrive after 2025. Apple is also reportedly developing its first pair of smart glasses and running focus groups to pinpoint what employees liked about smart glasses from competitors like Meta.
Choi told CNN that Samsung is also working on smart glasses, which may launch later this year. However, Choi says that Samsung is seeking to expand into other kinds of devices with more discreet form factors.
"We are actively working on glasses, but some people do not want to wear glasses because they change their look," Choi told the outlet. "So we are also exploring other types of devices."
Not all AI devices have resonated with consumers. The startup Humane introduced the $699 wearable Ai Pin in April 2024 as a smartphone alternative, but the device, which users could pin to their clothing, fell flat with reviewers due to overheating and lagging responses. Humane shut down the Ai Pin less than a year after its release and sold parts of itself to HP for about $116 million in February.