Meta is expected to double down on AI-powered augmented reality products with new smart glasses at its annual Connect event on Wednesday, even as the company faces scrutiny over its handling of child safety on its social media platforms.
Reuters
At its Menlo Park, California-based headquarters, CEO Mark Zuckerberg is expected to unveil Meta’s first consumer-ready smart glasses with a built-in display, a device that analysts predicted will retail for about $800.
Internally codenamed “Hypernova,” the glasses are expected to be launched as “Celeste,” analysts said, and will feature a small digital display in the right lens for basic functions such as notifications.
The new glasses are the latest in Meta’s effort to stay relevant in the AI race, where it is lagging rivals such as OpenAI and Alphabet’s Google, but analysts said the device’s hefty price tag could deter buyers.
The product will likely be much less advanced than the “Orion” prototype glasses that Meta showcased at last year’s event, a device that Zuckerberg called “the time machine to the future.”
The company did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment on the new glasses.
Meta, which expects to launch Orion in 2027, currently offers two lines of glasses – in collaboration with Ray Ban and Oakley – that incorporate artificial intelligence features, cameras, hands-free control and livestreaming to Meta’s social media platforms, Facebook and Instagram.
Zuckerberg, who has poured more than $60 billion since 2020 into Meta’s augmented reality unit, has said that smart glasses will be the company’s main conduit to integrate superintelligence – a hypothetical concept where AI surpasses human intelligence in every possible way – into everyday human lives.
In the effort to catch up in AI, Zuckerberg has sparked a billion-dollar talent war, aggressively poaching researchers from rivals, while whistleblowers have said Meta was putting profit over user safety.
Reuters reported last month that Meta’s AI policies allowed its chatbots to engage children in provocative conversations about sex and race, and whistleblowers said earlier this month Meta’s researchers were told not to investigate harms to children using its virtual reality technology so that the company could claim ignorance of the problem.
Meta told Reuters previously that it has removed portions in its policies that stated it was permissible for chatbots to engage in romantic roleplay with children.
At the two-day Connect conference, the company is also expected to launch its first wristband that allows users to control the new glasses with hand gestures. It is also expected to show an updated Ray-Ban line that comes with better cameras and battery life and supports new AI features, analysts said.
Meta is the rare Big Tech company to gain consumer traction in smart glasses, selling about two million pairs of the Ray-Ban line it makes with EssilorLuxottica since 2023, in a market where rival bets such as Google Glasses have stumbled. But the unit has posted billions in losses.
CNBC has reported the Hypernova glasses could feature Prada branding, as the Italian label is known for thick frames and arms that could house many of the necessary components. Prada did not respond immediately to an emailed request for comment.
Still, analysts said the expected $800 sticker price for the glasses – much higher than the $299 starting price for the Ray-Ban line and $399 for the sportier Oakley glasses – will mean that the device will have a negligible share of the market.
“These glasses will be somewhat bulky … not the most consumer-friendly design. It is also going to be pretty expensive. So the volumes are going to be fairly low,” said Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for International Data Corp’s worldwide mobile device tracker.
He estimated the device would sell “a few hundred thousand units at most” but could help get more developers on board to build apps for it. “This is a step to eventually build a much-better mass-market headset.” As part of efforts to attract developers, Meta is also expected to open its smart glasses to third-party developers with a new software kit.
Aditya Birla Group’s corporate social enterprise Aadyam Handwoven has named Sobhita Dhulipala as its new brand ambassador, who will contribute to the brand’s ‘Culture Beyond Textiles’ vision of preserving India’s weaving legacies.
Sobhita Dhulipala wearing a saree by Aadyam Handwoven – Aadyam Handwoven
“Aadyam has always stood for the people behind the loom, the cultures that shape our craft, and the traditions that continue to evolve. Sobhita is a woman of today who exemplifies this thinking with an innate sensitivity that is in tandem with our narrative,” said Aadyam Handwoven’s business lead Manish Saksena in a press release. “Her connect to handlooms is personal and intuitive, and her presence strengthens our endeavour to make Indian craftsmanship aspirational for a new generation.”
Aadyam Handwoven retails fashion and homeware goods designed to highlight Indian textile heritage and translate it for modern shoppers. The label aims to harness Dhulipala’s pan-India popularity to raise awareness about the brand and its textile ecosystem.
“I’ve always believed that craft carries emotion,” said Sobhita Dhulipala. “When something is made by hand, it holds the imprint of the person who created it. Aadyam’s work with weaving communities, combined with its philosophy of celebrating culture in all its forms, makes this association very special for me. I am honoured to lend my voice to a brand that champions artistry with purpose.”
One year on from his passing, Catalan fashion company Mango is commemorating the legacy of Isak Andic. In memory of its founder, who lost his life on December 14, 2024 in a tragic mountaineering accident in Barcelona, Mango has undertaken a series of commemorative initiatives across its stores and corporate channels to highlight the business, human, and philanthropic legacy of the entrepreneur, born in Istanbul in 1953.
Exterior of the Catalan brand’s store on Paseo de Gracia in Barcelona, adorned with a special tribute to Isak Andic. – Mango
In this context, some of the company’s most emblematic stores have dressed their windows with a portrait of Andic and messages inside that evoke his legacy. Specifically, the tributes have reached its stores from Paseo de Gracia in Barcelona to Serrano in Madrid, as well as international locations such as Oxford Street in London, Fifth Avenue in New York, and the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele in Milan. In parallel, Mango added a black ribbon to its e-commerce platform and shared a commemorative video on its internal channels and social media.
The audiovisual tribute, produced by company employees drawing on hours of archival footage and interviews, captures the founder’s lessons and reflections in his own voice. “Isak was a visionary who transformed a personal dream into a global brand. His legacy remains a constant source of inspiration for all of us,” the company shared on its LinkedIn profile alongside the video, adding that “his spirit lives on in every step we take towards the future, as we continue to work to fulfil his vision and ensure that Mango is a project he would be proud of.”
For his part, the group’s CEO and executive chairman, Toni Ruiz, shared a personal letter addressed to Andic, both internally and on his LinkedIn profile, in which he reaffirmed that the values that defined the founder will guide the brand’s next steps. In it, he remembers Andic as “a brilliant entrepreneur and an exceptional person,” stressing that “there has not been a single day on which we have not remembered him.” “Mango continues to sail steadily towards new horizons,” he said.
Ruiz recalled the conversations and ideas left unfinished and highlighted the trust that the founder placed in the team, noting that “Mango is made up of excellent professionals and even better people.” The executive also reviewed the milestones of the past year, from double-digit growth to international expansion and momentum across all product lines, as well as progress at Mango Campus and the company’s focus on innovation and artificial intelligence- areas that Andic always emphasised. “What could have been a difficult year, we have together turned into a historic one,” he stressed. The letter concludes with a message of gratitude on behalf of the 17,000 people who make up the company and with the phrase the founder often repeated: “the sky is the limit.”
In parallel, during the last year there have also been significant changes in the structure of the family holding company that owns Mango. Following the death of Isak Andic, his three children reorganised the family’s companies under Punta Na Holding, the entity that brings together the family investment vehicles and controls the vast majority of the fashion company’s capital. In this context, the eldest son, Jonathan Andic, stepped down in June from his position as global director of Mango Man, a role he had held for 17 years, to focus fully on managing the family’s investment companies, which include business and property investments, sharing corporate governance responsibilities with his sisters Sarah and Judith.
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Expanding women’s fashion retailer Wyse London is set to open a pop-up store in Edinburgh, Scotland, on Saturday (13 December).
Wyse London
The 550 sq ft space on Frederick Street isn’t just for Christmas as it’s opening until next May, housing the brand’s latest styles from its Autumn/Winter collection, including bestsellers the Liana Chunky Funnel Neck Jumper, Philippa Pea Coat and festive dresses and tops.
The pop-up marks the latest in a series of new store openings, “following the successful introduction to the North of England” in York in September. That became its fourth permanent UK store, joining the brand’s two in London – Chelsea and Marylebone – as well as Southwold, Suffolk.
More stores, both pop-up and permanent, are planned over 2026 both nationally and internationally, the retailer said.
Founder Marielle Wyse added: “Edinburgh has become an increasingly significant city for us, as we’ve seen a rapidly growing community of customers shopping with us online, so opening a physical pop-up feels like the natural next step.
“The city’s cultural heritage and vibrant population offers a setting that aligns perfectly with our brand values, while the thriving tourism scene brings an energy and international audience we’re excited to welcome. With a discerning retail landscape, the city gives us a unique opportunity to build deeper relationships with both existing and new customers.”
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