Apple is reportedly working on a pair of augmented reality smart glasses, with the Californian giant rumoured to release its first pair around 2020.
The news follows Apple’s acquisition of Colorado-based ‘Akonia Holographics’ – a small firm which specialises in lenses for augmented reality glasses.
According to Reuters, the deal is unlikely to be disclosed in regulatory filings, given a comparatively low purchase price.
Commentators speculate Apple’s smart glasses will impose digital information onto real world surroundings, similar to AR apps like Pokemon Go.
As per Akonia’s website, the company also specialises in ‘transparent smart glass lenses’ for head-mounted devices.
“The HoloMirror has introduced new possibilities to finally enable lightweight, high-FOV and low-cost consumer AR head-worn displays,” states Akonia’s website.
Over the last year, Apple has been further integrating augmented reality apps into iPhones via its ARKit.
According to Bloomberg, the Californian giant currently has an R&D team with hundreds of people, working on potential smart glasses prototypes and software.
As previously reported, other tech giants (e.g. Amazon, Google and Facebook) are also tipped to be developing similar devices.
The news follows Snapchat’s failed smart spectacles foray, coupled with relatively low adoption of the ‘Google Glass’.
