MIXED (Chris Steven, Sep 26) reports Omdia’s 1H26 AI glasses tracker: Meta SHIPPED 3.4 million of 4.2 million pairs worldwide — 81.3% SHARE — while Even Realities took SECOND with a CAMERA-FREE, speaker-free G2.
The 4.2 million units mark a RECORD for the category, up 127% year over year. Omdia senior analyst Qiran Ju ties that JUMP to “Meta’s continued market MOMENTUM and a wave of new market entrants from China.” Absolute SHARE still looks LOPSIDED: nobody else cleared 3% on Omdia’s table.
Even Realities Climbs From Fifth to Second
Even Realities SHIPPED 102,000 G2 pairs for a 2.4% share, rising from fifth place in 2H25. Demand across North America and Western Europe LIFTED the CAMERA-FREE startup, whose design “removes both the camera and speakers” in favor of a slimmer frame, a small monochrome DISPLAY, and productivity features such as real-time TRANSCRIPTION, Omdia says. That is a DIFFERENT product bet from Meta’s capture-and-audio line — and still a distant runner-up — but it put Even Realities AHEAD of every Chinese vendor Omdia names. The company raised $150 million at a $1 billion valuation in July.
Methodology Gap With Counterpoint
Counting the SAME half-year, Counterpoint’s tracker put 96% of AI glasses shipments in DISPLAYLESS frames and measured GROWTH at 263%. The two firms count DIFFERENT baskets; Omdia does not publish its category definition. The 136-point gap between growth rates says more about METHODOLOGY than about a single underlying market. Directionally, both trackers still SHOW a category more than DOUBLING — consistent with Omdia’s earlier 1H26 XR headwear note, where glasses gained SHARE as headsets slipped.
China Surges; the US Still Buys the Most
Mainland China shipments ROSE 306% year over year, yet the market there stays FRAGMENTED: Alibaba, INMO, and Xiaomi together held 46.1% of Chinese shipments. Omdia says the US “remains by far the LARGEST AI glasses market,” while mainland China works as both a supply-chain HUB and a testbed for new hardware configurations. That China acceleration rhymes with earlier platform sales data showing a sharp domestic PICKUP, even when definitions DIFFER across surveys.
Ju credits a CLEAR value pitch — hands-free photo and video CAPTURE, open-ear AUDIO, and AI assistance in everyday frames — for buyer clarity. That framing maps more closely to Meta’s line than to the CAMERA-FREE runner-up.
Omdia’s Window Closed Before Meta’s Newest Frames
Omdia’s counting window closed BEFORE Meta’s newest frames went on sale. Ray-Ban Meta (Gen 3) arrived September 23 at $449 in the US, with camera-free Ray-Ban Meta Audio at $349 shipping October 13. Meta says it will offer MORE than 100 different glasses OPTIONS across Ray-Ban, Oakley, and Meta Glasses by year end. The second-half table will be drawn against a MUCH wider Meta lineup than the one that produced 81.3%.
Sources: MIXED / Chris Steven (Sep 26, 2026); Meta / about.fb.com (Sep 23, 2026); prior Metaverse Watcher notes on Counterpoint AI glasses +263%, China smart glasses sales, and Omdia XR headwear 1H26.