Meta has been betting big on wearable AI, and this year’s Meta Connect 2025 was supposed to mark a turning point. Mark Zuckerberg, alongside CTO Andrew Bosworth, unveiled the latest generation of Meta smart glasses, including the upgraded Ray-Ban Meta, the $799 Meta Ray-Ban Display, and the sports-focused Oakley Meta Vanguard.
But what was meant to be a sleek showcase of breakthrough technology turned into a string of awkward demo fails. From a cooking assistant that couldn’t follow directions to video calls that refused to connect, the mishaps left audiences laughing—and left Meta scrambling to explain what went wrong.
Still, beneath the glitches lies a story of innovation, ambition, and what these glasses might mean for the future of wearable AI. Here are seven things you need to know about Meta’s latest smart glasses.
Zuckerberg set high expectations as he walked on stage in Menlo Park, joined by celebrities like James Cameron and Diplo. The event was billed as the official debut of Meta’s long-rumored “Hypernova” project, a new line of Meta smart glasses designed to merge fashion with cutting-edge AI.
The centerpiece of the show was the Meta Ray-Ban Display, a pair of glasses with a built-in digital overlay visible through the right lens. Controlled with a wristband, the device is designed to handle live captioning, translation, messaging, and even AI-powered recipe walkthroughs.
“This isn’t a prototype,” Zuckerberg said confidently. “It’s here, it’s ready to go, and you’re going to be able to buy them in a couple of weeks.”
2. The First Fail: Cooking With AI Went Sideways
Content creator Jack Mancuso was scheduled to do a live cooking demonstration as one of the highlights. While making steak sauce, Mancuso asked, “What do I do first?” using the new AI assistant built into Meta smart glasses.
But the AI was completely perplexed. It skipped forward in the recipe and falsely claimed that components had already been blended. Following multiple unsuccessful tries, Mancuso dismissed the incident with a joke and attributed it to the Wi-Fi before returning the segment to Zuckerberg.
In response, the audience applauded and laughed, but not for the right reasons.
3. The Second Fail: Calls That Wouldn’t Connect
Subsequently, Zuckerberg endeavored to demonstrate the glasses’ capability for seamless communication. Utilizing the Neural Band wrist controller, he successfully sent a text message to Bosworth. However, when Bosworth attempted to start a WhatsApp video call, the situation deteriorated.
The audience could hear the ringtone resonating throughout the venue, yet Zuckerberg was unable to answer. After several attempts, he conceded defeat, humorously stating: “I don’t know what happened.” Bosworth eventually joined him on stage, making a light-hearted remark about the “brutal Wi-Fi.”
This created an uncomfortable moment, particularly with the September 30 release date fast approaching.
4. What Really Went Wrong
After the event, Bosworth addressed the situation on Instagram, clarifying that the Wi-Fi wasn’t actually the issue. Instead, two separate technical problems sabotaged the demos:
The Cooking Demo Glitch: When Mancuso triggered Live AI, it accidentally launched on every pair of Meta smart glasses in the building. This overloaded Meta’s development server and essentially DDoS’d their own system.
The Video Call Bug: The display on Zuckerberg’s glasses went to sleep at the exact moment the call came in. By the time he woke it up, the notification had vanished due to a race condition bug—a rare timing error in software.
Bosworth reassured users that both issues had already been fixed and emphasized: “It really was just a demo fail and not a product failure.”
5. Why Meta Still Believes in Smart Glasses
Zuckerberg presented the glasses as the next major advancement in personal technology in spite of the glitches. The goal of Meta smart glasses, in contrast to smartphones, is to serve as proactive AI assistants by providing real-time language translation, live captioning, and step-by-step assistance with challenging tasks.
By extending into Oakley’s sport-focused designs and maintaining its collaboration with Ray-Ban, Meta further highlighted style and brand appeal. Making AI feel wearable and natural rather than clunky or experimental is the aim.
6. The Price and Availability
The newly released Meta Ray-Ban Display is available for $799 and is set to start shipping in late September. Meta aims to present it as more than just a device—it is designed to be a lifestyle product that merges fashion with functionality.
Additional models, such as the revamped Ray-Ban Meta and the Oakley Meta Vanguard, will offer various options for users based on their style preferences and intended use.
7. Lessons From the Demo
Meta’s Connect 2025 keynote underlined one crucial truth: live demos are risky. Apple has largely abandoned them, preferring polished pre-recorded videos to avoid surprises. Zuckerberg, however, chose the high-stakes route, and it didn’t pay off.
Still, audiences may remember the laughs more than the flaws. And if the Meta smart glasses deliver as promised outside the spotlight, these demo fails could fade into a funny footnote in Meta’s larger AI journey.
Final Thoughts
The Connect 2025 keynote might be remembered as one of Meta’s most awkward presentations, but it also underscored how ambitious the company’s vision really is. Meta smart glasses represent the next phase of wearable AI, blending convenience, connectivity, and style into a single product.
The failed demos may have caused some embarrassment, but they don’t erase the potential of the technology. If Meta delivers on its promises, these glasses could redefine how we interact with AI in everyday life.
For now, the world waits to see whether the product launch goes smoother than the keynote.
FAQs
Meta smart glasses are wearable devices developed in partnership with Ray-Ban and Oakley, combining fashion with AI-powered digital assistants.
The flagship Meta Ray-Ban Display is priced at $799, while other models may vary in price depending on features.
They support live captioning, translation, messaging, video calls, and AI-driven step-by-step guides.