Meta Connect 2024: Smarter AI Tools, Orion AR Glasses Set to Change Global Interactions

At Meta Connect 2024, the company unveiled a range of cutting-edge advancements in AI and augmented reality, aimed at bringing the virtual and physical worlds closer together. 

Making its AI tools smarter and introducing its first true augmented reality (AR) glasses, Meta AI now offers users more universal and interactive ways to engage with its features.

The AI assistant, now capable of responding to voice commands across Messenger, Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram, enhances communication by allowing users to ask questions and receive audible responses.

This update includes the ability to customise the assistant’s voice, with options like Awkwafina, Dame Judi Dench, and John Cena among others, making the experience more personal and entertaining.

In addition to voice interaction, Meta AI can now interpret and interact with photos, enabling users to upload images and ask the AI questions about them. Whether it’s identifying a flower from a hiking trip or providing a recipe based on a dish in a photo, the AI offers seamless visual assistance.

Again, users can edit their photos by asking the AI to make alterations, such as changing backgrounds or adjusting outfits—further integrating AI into everyday creative tasks.

Meta also revealed a new translation tool that is being tested on Instagram and Facebook. This tool automatically translates the audio in Reels, allowing content to reach wider audiences by breaking language barriers.

By dubbing audio and synchronising lip movements, Meta AI helps creators expand their reach, particularly in regions such as Latin America and the US, where the tool is currently being trialled in English and Spanish.

In the business aspect, Meta has enhanced its AI offerings to assist businesses in improving customer engagement. With the integration of AI into messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Messenger, businesses can now use AI to respond to customer inquiries, provide support, and even facilitate transactions.

Early adopters have already seen great benefits, with campaigns utilising AI tools achieving higher engagement and conversion rates.

One of the most amazing announcements at the Meta Connect 2024 was the introduction of Orion, Meta’s first true AR glasses. These glasses, which have been in development for several years, combine advanced holographic displays with contextual AI, offering a beautiful experience that bridges the gap between the digital and physical worlds.

Orion is a huge progress in augmented reality, providing users with hands-free access to a wide range of digital tools while maintaining the familiar look and feel of everyday eyewear.

Designed to integrate seamlessly into daily life, Orion’s lightweight form factor is packed with miniaturised components, offering the largest field of view in any AR glasses to date.

Whether it’s multitasking with digital windows, viewing life-sized holograms, or making hands-free calls, Orion is set to impact the way people interact with both the digital and physical environments.

Meta’s focus on AR technology goes beyond Orion. The company has committed to refining its AR displays, making them sharper and more compact, with plans to scale production to make them more accessible.

While Orion is still in the prototype phase, its development is in line with Meta’s goal of merging wearable technology with everyday functionality.