Why AI was made for smart glasses

 Letter from the editor
Sabrina Ortiz, Senior Editor, AI

This week, I wrote a lot about the new limited edition Meta Oakley smart glasses. Why? AI assistance is expanding into its own category of devices -- and from what I've seen, smart glasses are the most compelling form factor for it. 

The idea behind AI devices is simple: AI is only as helpful as the information you give it, so the more access you give it to your everyday life, the more tasks it can help you with. That's why companies are trying out different wearable form factors. Humane AI notoriously launched an AI pin, while others, like Bee, offered a wristband that listens to you constantly -- an approach that may prove promising, given Amazon’s acquisition of Bee this week.

In its ideal iteration, AI seamlessly integrates with your life to readily perform actions for you. Smart glasses are a good form factor for that because they hear and see the world from your POV, making the handoff between you and the AI as effortless as possible. Read more about how here.

While the industry is trending toward AI hardware, it's equally focused on software -- though that did hit a few snags. While software generally reaches impressive developments every week, ZDNET’s David Gewirtz tested ChatGPT Agent Mode, and the results were lackluster. He found it was able to understand the task or problem it was presented with, but struggled to execute...which is the whole purpose of an AI agent. 

Elsewhere, Replit experienced a vibe coding disaster, Amazon's Q coding assistant got hacked, and Gewirtz laid out tasks you shouldn't let AI handle just yet. This isn’t to say that agentic technology won’t get there, because it probably will -- and soon. It's just not it's where it needs to be to take action for you yet. 

Beyond the tech, it was a big week for AI policy, too. The Trump administration released its AI Action Plan, a monumental development considering the AI space is so nascent that there isn’t much precedent. 

But if you were hoping it would address the industry's most highly contested issues, such as copyright infringement and safety requirements, you’ll need to keep waiting. You can read more about what the policy means for the future of work, the environment, and more in Radhika Rajkumar's analysis.  

As always, an eventful week in the AI space. Stay tuned for my recap next Friday. 

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