Augmented, Virtual and Mixed Reality

2026 is an exciting time for smart glasses, with several products expected to be launched from big tech players later this year, which will follow Meta's release of the Ray-Ban Display launched in September 2025. The optics required to give AI smart glasses augmented reality (AR) capabilities are called waveguides and are positioned within the eyepiece. There have been several key developments to waveguide technology which are enabling AR smart glasses which are lightweight, have longer battery life, and have a fashionable form factor. IDTechEx forecasts 35 million AR smart glasses to be sold annually by 2036.

IDTechEx analyst Thomas Bithell discusses the AR smart glass market and the optics used.

This article evaluates some of the strengths and weaknesses of reflective and diffractive waveguides used in augmented reality (AR) optics for smart glasses.

Missed out on CES this year? Or did you attend but miss the chance to explore the sensor innovations on display? In this article, IDTechEx Principal Technology Analyst Dr Tess Skyrme outlines three important trends for the sensor market evident from our trip to Las Vegas this year.

Enhancing the relationship between people's health and wellbeing and the global movement of digitalization with the use of wearables will allow for a wider understanding of health conditions or the optimization of communication. This article explores different device types and their use cases.

This article describes the variety of optics required for XR (extended reality) devices. For AR glasses, this includes waveguides and other technologies such as birdbath combiners, whilst for VR headsets, solutions include pancake, Fresnel, and aspheric lenses. Across XR devices, different optics solutions are required based on the intended use case, with a variety of factors contributing to the suitability of an optics technology for a specific device. Factors include weight, optical efficiency, image quality, form factor, and cost.

Translating the body's signals into readable measurements or partaking in the enjoyment of gaming are ever-expanding possibilities with streamlined and accessible wearable devices. This article explores a wide range of wearables, including smart watches, glasses, mouthguards, glucose patches, VR headsets, and brain computer interfaces.

Accessing health metrics during any hour of the day is becoming the new norm as wearable technology is gaining traction and becoming increasingly widespread. This article covers some of the most popular wearable types alongside some newer, emerging applications.

Around the clock access to health metrics, made accessible by wearable devices for consumers, is revolutionizing fitness optimization and healthcare in a non-invasive way. This article covers different wearable devices, and the many types of sensors and their primary applications.