Alibaba Calls Its New AI Glasses The 'Next Mobile Phone,' Unveiling Tech To Rival Apple, Samsung
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. – ADR (NYSE:BABA) launched its first artificial intelligence glasses in China on Thursday, accelerating its push into the fast-growing smart wearables market.
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The new Quark artificial intelligence (AI) Glasses — named after Alibaba's Quark AI assistant — come in two lines: the flagship S1 with three variations and the lightweight G1, also with three versions.
"AI glasses are the intelligent devices that truly usher in a revolution in human-computer interaction in the AI era," Alibaba vice-president Wu Jia told SCMP. "Their importance is no less than that of mobile phones."
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Alibaba priced the S1 starting at 3,799 yuan ($537).
Alibaba sees smart glasses as the next major consumer platform after smartphones — a view shared by global competitors such as Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META), Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (OTC:SSNLF) — and a strategic way to capture the next generation of user traffic in China's increasingly competitive e-commerce and consumer AI markets.
The model features a dual-chip system powered by Qualcomm Inc's (NASDAQ:QCOM) Snapdragon AR1 processor and a low-power coprocessor. The company said the S1 offers hands-free assistance for daily tasks — including real-time translation, navigation, payments, and responses to user questions — through the Quark assistant and Qwen AI, Alibaba's ChatGPT-style model.
The G1, priced from 1,899 yuan and weighing 40 grams, shares the S1's core hardware without the display, offering a lighter alternative focused on camera and AI functions.
Alibaba positioned the Quark lineup as a direct competitor to Meta’s Ray-Ban Display glasses, released in September for $799 with a full-color display.
Apple is developing multiple head-mounted devices with launches expected by 2027, aiming to leap ahead of Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses lineup.
Snap Inc (NYSE:SNAP) is also preparing lightweight AR glasses to join the race.
Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) added to the momentum by unveiling AI-powered smart delivery glasses that provide drivers with hands-free navigation, package identification and real-time task updates.
The system uses computer vision and geospatial mapping to boost delivery safety and efficiency, with more driver-assist features on the way.
Alibaba’s Quark glasses include a monochrome green display on the S1, along with bone-conduction microphones, built-in cameras, and a swappable dual-battery system that supports up to 24 hours of use.
The company previewed the glasses in July, sparking early interest, and began presales in late October on major Chinese e-commerce platforms, including Taobao, JD.com Inc (NASDAQ:JD) and Douyin.
The release follows a surge in the global smart glasses market — with shipments more than doubling in the first half of 2025, driven largely by Meta's products, according to Counterpoint Research.
Chinese rivals are also ramping up competition. Xiaomi Corp (OTC:XIACY) launched a 1,999-yuan model in June, Baidu Inc.'s (NASDAQ:BIDU) Xiaodu AI Glass Pro went on sale this month for 2,299 yuan, and Rokid introduced its lightweight device priced from 2,199 yuan in partnership with eyewear brand Bolon.
Alibaba emphasized the deep integration of Quark AI Glasses with its extensive app ecosystem.
It included enabling seamless access to Amap mapping, Taobao shopping searches, Fliggy travel bookings and Alipay mobile payments via Ant Group.
The company is also expanding partnerships with external services — including QQ Music and NetEase Inc (NASDAQ:NTES) Cloud Music — to unify experiences across shopping, travel, entertainment, and productivity.
A camera in the lens lets users scan products and instantly view Taobao pricing. Other features include AI-generated meeting notes, image recognition, real-time navigation cues, and 3K photo + 4K AI-upscaled video capture using Alibaba's Super Raw image enhancement.
BABA Price Action: BABA shares were down 1.35% at $155.47 in pre-market trading on Friday.
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