China: Chinese-made AI glasses shift into sharp global focus.

Storyline Chinese-made AI glasses shift into sharp global focus As Chinese-made AI glasses expand into global markets, this emerging export is drawing growing attention to the market for AR and ER glasses. China shipped 2.46 million smart glasses in 2025, up 87 percent year on year. Chinese brands accounted for 23 percent of global shipments and dominated the AR and ER segment with an 87 percent share. Companies including RayNeo and XREAL are expanding across Europe and the US, while Xiaomi, Rokid, INMO and Alibaba’s Qwen are accelerating their overseas push. So, we headed to Hangzhou, one of China’s top innovation hubs, to visit the company behind them and see that future for ourselves. Bi Ran, Reporter: "Right now, I can see a full navigation interface projected into these glasses, guiding me directly to the office building." Zhu Mingming, founder and CEO, Rokid: "Smart glasses or AI glasses will be the most popular AI terminal devices to the end user in the AI era. So, I think it's going to get more popular, so maybe in the coming three to five years everybody will put AI glasses on." The rise of multimodal AI is giving the category new momentum. They become a tool for translation, navigation, note-taking, photography, entertainment, and even real-time assistance. And in scenarios that demand richer visual experiences, AR glasses are more than just assistance, they are becoming portals for work, entertainment, communication, and spatial computing. Yang Shiqi, marketing director, Xreal: "This is our most high-end product series. It is powered by our self-developed optical engine technology, combined with a spatial computing chip. With these two key technologies integrated, we believe we are at the forefront of the AI industry." China’s smart-glasses industry has built a strong hardware foundation, with lighter designs and AI now standard. The next step is finding useful applications and turning interest into sales. Wang Hongcheng, tech influencer: "There are like XR glasses, AR glasses, AI glasses, MR (Mixed Reality) glasses. So these are completely different types of glasses and I will use them in different scenarios. I think AI definitely pushed a lot of buttons for a lot of brands, that's the future." Industry observers say AI exports now encompass a wide range of digital capabilities. As AI glasses become as comfortable as regular eyewear, improved optics, stronger AI features and rising consumer acceptance are helping Chinese brands move the market from early interest to wider adoption. [Restrictions: No access Chinese mainland]