At CES 2025, Sharge, a company better known for its sleek power banks, introduced Loomos AI Glasses, an AI-first wearable designed to compete with Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses. Powered by OpenAI’s GPT-4o, Loomos aims to bring real-time assistance, voice commands, translation, and object recognition into a lightweight frame.
The glasses recently completed a Kickstarter campaign, raising over $1.8 million, suggesting strong early interest. But crowdfunding success does not always translate to mainstream adoption, and the question remains: Can a small hardware startup outmaneuver Meta in the AI wearables space?
A Practical Step Toward AI Wearables
The Loomos glasses offer a mix of hands-free functionality and AI integration, similar to what Meta has done with its latest Ray-Ban smart glasses. They feature a 16-megapixel Sony camera capable of 4K photos and 1080p video, open-ear Hi-Fi speakers, and a 450mAh battery that supports up to 40 hours of standby time—a significant improvement over Meta’s offering.
For those needing more power, Sharge has developed a 6,500mAh neckband battery, which extends usage far beyond competing devices. The Snap-on modular sunglasses clip makes the glasses suitable for indoor and outdoor use.
Because Loomis is powered by ChatGPT, it can help you on the go with local information which Meta’s AI technology can’t do. This is a very big, if temporary advantage to Loomis.
The AI Glasses Landscape
The push for AI-powered wearables has gained momentum. Meta reportedly sold 2 million Ray-Bans over the holidays. Amazon is releasing updated Alexa Frames next month. Still, adoption remains slow, largely because AI assistants are not yet good enough to replace screens.
Loomos’ GPT-4o integration improves usability, allowing hands-free voice commands for translation, transcription, and real-time web searches, but without location awareness, it falls short of being a true all-in-one assistant. Once AI glasses can process information based on where you are and what’s happening around you, they will become indispensable.
Loomos glasses are lightweight (49g) and comfortable to wear, though they may not be as seamless as Meta’s Ray-Bans, which benefit from years of refinement in the eyewear space. Unlike AR headsets, these look like normal glasses, which is essential for mainstream adoption.
The touch controls on the side of the frame allow users to navigate functions like volume and playback, making them easy to operate without relying on voice commands. However, their privacy approach mirrors Meta’s, with an LED indicator showing when the camera is in use.
A Crowdfunded Gamble
The Kickstarter campaign’s success suggests demand, but history has shown that hardware startups often struggle with production and logistics. Sharge has a solid track record in consumer electronics, but smart glasses are a different challenge, involving complex AI integration and long-term software support.
Meta, by contrast, has the infrastructure and resources to iterate quickly, improving AI functionality and integrating its glasses more deeply into its ecosystem. Sharge, despite its ambitions, lacks that same platform advantage.
The Road Ahead
Loomos represents a first step toward practical AI glasses, bridging the gap between AI wearables and traditional eyewear. But to truly challenge Meta, it will need to evolve—adding location awareness, real-time web search, and better contextual AI capabilities.
For now, Loomos is an interesting alternative for those looking to experiment with AI-enhanced glasses. Whether it can compete long-term in a market that is increasingly defined by Big Tech remains to be seen.
Charlie Fink is the author of the AR-enabled books “Metaverse,” (2017) and “Convergence” (2019). In the early 90s, Fink was EVP & COO of VR pioneer Virtual World Entertainment. He teaches at Chapman University in Orange, CA.
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