Key Points
- Meta’s artificial intelligence (AI) and metaverse technologies have made significant advances in 2023, with concepts like generative AI and mixed reality becoming integrated into popular apps and devices.
- Future AI manifestations will work seamlessly in assisting with daily tasks without the need for prompting.
- Meta’s AI-powered Ray-Ban glasses demonstrate a new kind of device that interacts with the world in previously unimaginable ways.
Meta has announced significant progress in artificial intelligence (AI) and the metaverse in their end-of-year wrap-up. Their two main technological areas of investment are set to revolutionize the consumer experience, with generative AI becoming integrated into popular applications, and mixed reality becoming a key feature of mass-market headsets. The company’s AI-powered Ray-Ban Meta glasses are one of the innovative products bringing these technologies to life, allowing users to interact with technologies hands-free.
AI developments of particular note include the success and scalability of the Llama and Llama 2 models, with Meta noting that AI will have its most significant impact when it is available to all. Advances in machine learning are set to shift the way people interact with devices and machines, translating into unprecedented capabilities for new devices like the Meta glasses, which combine vision and language understanding to process the world from the user’s perspective.
Mixed reality also represents a critical path forward. To make these technologies accessible to as many people as possible, Meta released the first mass-market mixed reality headset, Meta Quest 3, in September 2023. The company anticipates the rate at which users access mixed reality will accelerate as more people familiarize themselves with the technology.
Meta acknowledges the long-term investment strategy inherent in developing these emerging technologies. For AI, the company is focusing on the development of embodied AI, which models the world as humans experience it, requiring a deep understanding of how the world works. For the continued progress of mixed reality, the company is working on advancing the technology that makes the next computing platform possible. Despite the challenges and cost associated with these investments, Meta emphasizes the importance of investing in future technologies.