Connect with us

Published

on

Xreal Air 2 in action. Xreal’s augmented reality glasses is compatible with gaming consoles and can allow users to play games on a large virtual screen

Xreal

Chinese augmented reality (AR) firm Xreal on Tuesday launched its next-generation glasses, as interest continues to rise in the technology that many tech giants like Apple and Meta see as the next big consumer product after the smartphone.

The Xreal Air 2 and Xreal Air 2 Pro are lightweight glasses, rather than bulky headsets, as the company bets on this kind of device appealing to a wider array of consumers looking for an easy-to-wear product.

“The Air 2 was designed primarily with a focus on improving the comfort while people are using it,” Peng Jin, co-founder of Xreal, told CNBC in an interview on Tuesday.

AR refers to technology where digital experiences are imposed over the real world. Xreal glasses allow users to have large-screen experiences of apps, such as streaming services or gaming. Xreal’s AR glasses can connect to smartphones, game consoles and other devices, allowing a user to open an app and see what they’re viewing on a virtual screen up to 330-inches.

Xreal is launching the glasses in the U.S., U.K. and in some markets in Europe. The Xreal Air 2 starts at $399 while the Pro versions starts at $449. The gear will be available for order in November.

The company said it has managed to use smaller displays inside the device, resulting in AR glasses that are 10% lighter than the previous generation. Xreal also said it has improved the headset speakers to prevent as much sound from escaping.

The first generation of the Xreal Air was released last year.

Tech giants bet on augmented reality

The market for augmented and virtual reality headsets is in its infancy with just 8.5 million headsets expected to be shipped this year, as the market faces a lull due to a drop in consumer spending led by the tough global economic environment, according to International Data Corporation.

The market is seen rebounding in 2024 and growing 46.8% year-on-year, IDC said, likely thanks to the expected introduction of new hardware.

The highly-anticipated Apple Vision Pro will launch next year, alongside new hardware from Facebook-parent Meta — the biggest AR and VR headset maker by market share.

These technology giants see headsets as the potential next big platform for computing. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has staked a large part of the company’s future betting these technologies take off.

Discussing competition in the market, Xreal suggested Apple is marketing the Vision Pro to existing users of Apple products and trying to bring the Apple services from the iPhone or Mac to mixed reality — another term that refers to the combination of virtual and augmented reality.

Jin said that Meta is meanwhile trying to bring its social network to virtual reality, which “has proven to be extremely challenging.” He pointed to technological challenges and Meta’s struggles with commercializing its VR apps.

The Xreal Air 2 glasses start at $399 and will be launched in the U.S., U.K. and selected European markets.

Xreal

Jin said Xreal’s strength is in its lack of legacy, suggesting that Apple would not make a headset that necessarily connects to rival systems and that Meta’s headsets would likely be linked to the company’s social networks.

“For us, we have that flexibility. We have that freedom of not having to work with any existing legacy … so we are cross platform, we don’t mind starting at a very basic experience, and letting people learn about us, accept us into their everyday life, so we can grow from there,” Jin said.

He added that, ultimately, when big companies are involved in a technology, “it’s always good for everybody,” by bringing in more capital, talent and business opportunities.

Xreal aims for fast growth

Still, Xreal is a small player in the market, commanding just a 2% market share, according to IDC — behind giants Meta, Sony with its PlayStation VR and TikTok parent ByteDance.

The company has now sold 250,000 headsets in its lifetime, up from a previously disclosed figure of 150,000 in May.

Jin said the goal is to hit 1 million unit sales annually, which he said he hopes can happen in the next two-to-three years time.

Xreal numbers some big investors, including Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba and electric vehicle firm Nio. Jin said Xreal has been “talking with investors very actively” about raising more money and is in “deep discussions” with some investment firms. He declined to provide further details.

Continue Reading

Technology

Amazon CEO Jassy says AI will lead to ‘fewer people doing some of the jobs’ that get automated

Published

on

By

Amazon CEO Jassy says AI will lead to 'fewer people doing some of the jobs' that get automated

AI will change the workforce, says Amazon CEO Andy Jassy

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said the rapid rollout of generative artificial intelligence means the company will one day require fewer employees to do some of the work that computers can handle.

“Like with every technical transformation, there will be fewer people doing some of the jobs that the technology actually starts to automate,” Jassy told CNBC’s Jim Cramer in an interview on Monday. “But there’s going to be other jobs.”

Even as AI eliminates the need for some roles, Amazon will continue to hire more employees in AI, robotics and elsewhere, Jassy said.

Earlier this month, Jassy admitted that he expects the company’s workforce to decline in the next few years as Amazon embraces generative AI and AI-powered software agents. He told staffers in a memo that it will be “hard to know exactly where this nets out over time” but that the corporate workforce will shrink as Amazon wrings more efficiencies out of the technology.

It’s a message that’s making its way across the tech sector. Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff last week claimed AI is doing 30% to 50% of the work at his software vendor. Other companies such as Shopify and Microsoft have urged employees to adopt the technology in their daily work. The CEO of Klarna said in May that the online lender has managed to shrink its headcount by about 40%, in part due to investments in AI and natural attrition in its workforce.

Jassy said on Monday that AI will free employees from “rote work” and “make all our jobs more interesting,” while enabling staffers to invent better services more quickly than before.

Amazon and other tech companies have also been shrinking their workforces through rolling layoffs over the past several years. Amazon has cut more than 27,000 jobs since the start of 2022, and it’s announced smaller, more targeted layoffs in its retail and devices units in recent months.

Amazon shares are flat so far this year, underperforming the Nasdaq, which has gained 5.5%. The stock is about 10% below its record reached in February, while fellow megacaps Meta, Microsoft and Nvidia are all trading at or very near record highs.

WATCH: Jassy says robots that will eventually do delivery and transportation

Over time we will have robots that will do delivery and transportation, says Amazon CEO Andy Jassy

Continue Reading

Technology

Stablecoin issuer Circle applies for a national bank charter

Published

on

By

Stablecoin issuer Circle applies for a national bank charter

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), on the day of Circle Internet Group’s IPO, in New York City, U.S., June 5, 2025.

Brendan McDermid | Reuters

Stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Group has applied for a national trust bank charter, moving forward on its mission to bring stablecoins into the traditional financial world after the firm’s big market debut this month, CNBC confirmed.

Shares rose 1% after hours.

If the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency grants the bank charter, Circle will establish the First National Digital Currency Bank, N.A. Under the charter, Circle, which issues the USDC stablecoin, will also be able to offer custody services in the future to institutional clients for assets, which could include representations of stocks and bonds on a blockchain network.

Reuters first reported on Circle’s bank charter application.

There are no plans to change the management of Circle’s USDC reserves, which are currently held with other major banks.

Anchorage Digital is the only other crypto company to obtain such a license.

Circle’s move comes after a wildly successful IPO and debut trading month on the public markets. Shares of the company are up 484% in June. The company is also benefiting from a wave of optimism after the Senate’s passage of the GENIUS Act, which would give the U.S. a regulatory framework for stablecoins.

Having a federally regulated trust charter would also help Circle meet requirements under the GENIUS Act.

“Establishing a national digital currency trust bank of this kind marks a significant milestone in our goal to build an internet financial system that is transparent, efficient and accessible,” Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire said in a statement shared with CNBC. “By applying for a national trust charter, Circle is taking proactive steps to further strengthen our USDC infrastructure.”

“Further, we will align with emerging U.S. regulation for the issuance and operation of dollar-denominated payment stablecoins, which we believe can enhance the reach and resilience of the U.S. dollar, and support the development of crucial, market neutral infrastructure for the world’s leading institutions to build on,” he said.

Don’t miss these cryptocurrency insights from CNBC Pro:

Continue Reading

Technology

Meta shares hit all-time high as Mark Zuckerberg goes on AI hiring blitz

Published

on

By

Meta shares hit all-time high as Mark Zuckerberg goes on AI hiring blitz

Mark Zuckerberg, chief executive officer of Meta Platforms Inc., during the Meta Connect event on Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024.

Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images


Meta shares hit a record high on Monday, underscoring investor interest in the company’s new AI superintelligence group.

The company’s shares reached $747.90 during midday trading, topping Meta’s previous stock market record in February when it began laying off the 5% of its workforce that it deemed “low performers.”

Meta joins Microsoft and Nvidia among tech megacaps that have reached new highs of late, all closing at records Monday. Apple, Amazon, Alphabet and Tesla remain below their all-time highs reached late last year or early this year.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been on an AI hiring blitz amid fierce competition with rivals such as OpenAI and Google parent Alphabet. Earlier in June, Meta said it would hire Scale AI CEO Alexandr Wang and some of his colleagues as part of a $14.3 billion investment into the executive’s data labeling and annotation startup.

The social media company also hired Nat Friedman and his business partner, Daniel Gross, the chief of Safe Superintelligence, an AI startup with a valuation of $32 billion, CNBC reported on June 19. Meta’s attempts to buy Safe Superintelligence were rebuffed by the startup’s founder and AI expert Ilya Sutskever, the report noted.

Wang and Friedman are the leaders of Meta’s new Superintelligence Labs, tasked with overseeing the company’s artificial intelligence foundation models, projects and research, a person familiar with the matter told CNBC. The term superintelligence refers to technology that exceeds human capability.

Bloomberg News first reported about the new superintelligence unit.

Meta has also snatched AI researchers from OpenAI. Sam Altman, OpenAI’s CEO, said during a podcast that Meta was offering signing bonuses as high as $100 million.

Andrew Bosworth, Meta’s technology chief, spoke about the social media company’s AI hiring spree during a June 20 interview with CNBC’s “Closing Bell Overtime,” saying that the talent market is “really incredible and kind of unprecedented in my 20-year career as a technology executive.”

WATCH: Meta’s AI talent spending spree

Meta escalated talent war with OpenAI

Continue Reading

Trending