AI glasses heading toward mass adoption in China
人工智能眼镜将在中国大规模普及
BEIJING, March 21 (Xinhua) -- Freestyle skiing Olympic champion Xu Mengtao wore a pair of AI glasses to record her gym training ahead of the Winter Olympic Games in Milan, while maintenance staff in the city of Hangzhou in east China used this hands-free gadget to conduct inspections at EV charging stations. Additionally, an Australian vlogger shared a glimpse of his AI eyewear in a recent video, saying it has proven his most trusted travel companion in China.
新华社北京 3月21日电 自由式滑雪奥运冠军徐梦桃，在备战米兰奥运会期间，用AI眼镜记录了自己的训练过程；而杭州电动汽车充电站的维修人员也在使用这种免手持设备来开展巡检工作。此外，一位澳大利亚视频博主在近期发布的视频中同样展示了他的AI眼镜，称它已经是他在中国旅行时最值得信赖的伙伴。
Once beloved only by geeks, AI glasses have now been transformed into sought-after products, drawing capital investment and sparking intense competition among Chinese tech companies. Industry observers believe that this wearable AI hardware has begun moving from a niche market toward mass consumer adoption in China.
在过去只被极客追捧的人工智能眼镜，如今已成为热门产品，吸引了资本投资，中国科技企业也在激烈竞争。行业观察人士认为，在中国，这种可穿戴式AI硬件已经开始从小众市场走向大众普及。
As smart wearable devices integrated with artificial intelligence, AI glasses are regarded by many as the next generation personal computing platform, following smartphones and smartwatches.
在许多人看来，人工智能眼镜作为一种智能可穿戴式设备，是继智能手机和智能手表之后的一代新个人计算平台。
Earlier this month, Alibaba rolled out its first AI glasses to be powered by its Qwen large language model, while state-owned telecom operator China Unicom unveiled its new AI eyewear. Also, photos of consumers crowding into Huawei and Xiaomi stores to try out their latest AI glasses have flooded social media.
本月初，阿里巴巴推出了首款搭载了”千问“大语言模型的人工智能眼镜；国有电信运营商中国联通也发布了新款人工智能眼镜。此外，消费者涌入华为、小米门店试用最新款人工智能眼镜的照片，也在社交平台上刷屏。
Besides tech giants and specialized smart glasses companies, other major players in China also include home appliance brands and display panel manufacturers.
在中国市场内，主要参与者除科技巨头和专业智能眼镜公司外，还包括家电品牌和显示面板制造商。
The entry of leading Chinese companies into the AI eyewear market is not simply a case of following a trend, but is a race for securing a share of the next-generation mobile terminal.
中国头部企业进军人工智能眼镜领域，并非是跟风，而是为了争夺下一代移动终端的份额。
According to Wang Junjie, vice president of smart glasses maker Hangzhou Lingban Technology, smartphones have already reached their physical limits in terms of screen size and interaction methods, leaving little room for further innovation. In contrast, smart glasses, which are close to the human brain and capable of capturing diverse forms of information, can serve as "the bridge between the physical and digital worlds."
据杭州灵伴科技副总裁王俊杰所说，智能手机在屏幕尺寸和交互方式上已近物理极限，几乎没有再创新空间。与之相比，智能眼镜更贴近人脑，并且能够捕捉多种形式信息，更能充当“物理世界和数字世界之间的桥梁”。
Meanwhile, as competition among AI models intensifies, the focus is moving to real-world applications. Si Weixin, an associate professor at Shenzhen University of Advanced Technology in south China, noted that many companies entering the game "aim to secure the right to speak in the next AI-driven computing era."
与此同时，随着大模型之间的竞争日益加剧，行业重心正转向真实场景的落地实用。深圳理工大学副教授司伟鑫指出，许多入局该领域的公司是为确保在由人工智能驱动的新时代能够掌握话语权。
Market researcher International Data Corporation (IDC) forecasts that Chinese manufacturers will account for 45 percent of the global AI glasses market in 2026, with shipments from Chinese brands reaching 22.67 million units worldwide, up 56.3 percent year on year.
市场研究机构国际数据公司（IDC）预测，到2026年，中国厂商将占全球人工智能眼镜市场45%的份额，中国品牌的全球出货量将达到2267万台，同比增长56.3%。
A key driver of this mass adoption is government support. In January this year, AI glasses were included in China's national subsidy program for the first time, offering buyers a 15-percent discount on purchases, capped at 500 yuan (72.6 U.S. dollars).
政府的支持是人工智能眼镜大规模普及的关键动力。今年1月，人工智能眼镜首次被纳入中国国家补贴计划，消费者购买时可享受15%的购买折扣，补贴上限为500元人民币（约为72.6美元）。
E-commerce platform JD. com has noted that the AI eyewear market has maintained double-digit growth since 2025, and it has seen month-on-month increases following the addition of the subsidy earlier this year.
电商平台京东指出，人工智能眼镜市场自2025年以来一直保持两位数增长。而在今年补贴政策实施后，市场销量更是呈现环比增长趋势。
Beyond policy, China's competitiveness lies in its manufacturing strength. For example, in economic powerhouse Guangdong Province in south China, popular AI glasses, AI toys and intelligent robots can achieve a rapid production cycle: design in the morning, sampling in the afternoon, mass production the next day and export within a week.
除政策加持外，中国的竞争力还在于制造业实力。例如，在华南经济强省广东，热门的AI眼镜、AI玩具和智能机器人可以完成极快的生产闭环：上午设计、下午打样、次日生产，一周内即可完成出口。
According to Zeng Jinze, a senior official with Guangdong's industry and information technology department, sales of AI glasses in Shenzhen's Huaqiangbei electronics market, which is dubbed "China's hardware Silicon Valley," have surged by 80 percent over the past two months, while the number of foreign buyers has doubled in this period.
据广东省工业和信息化厅厅长曾进泽所说，在被称为“中国硬件硅谷”的深圳华强北电子市场，近两个月人工智能眼镜的销量暴涨了80%，外国采购商的数量在此期间同样翻了一倍。
Despite such rapid growth, challenges remain. Ye Qingqing, an analyst at IDC China, pointed out that the core bottleneck in the mass adoption process is found in the supply chain, particularly in the ramping up of production capacity for key components, such as more advanced chips, display screens and batteries.
尽管市场增长如此迅速，挑战却依然存在。IDC中国分析师叶青青指出，人工智能眼镜大规模普及过程中的核心瓶颈在于供应链，尤其是先进芯片、显示屏、电池这类关键零部件的产能提升问题。
Ye added that current functions offered by AI glasses, like photography, translation and navigation, can be easily replicated by smartphones, giving users little incentive to move beyond curiosity to long-term use of these glasses. More efforts should focus on leveraging the unique features of such glasses, including first-person interaction, real-time sensing and proactive services, thus exploring scenarios that integrate into daily life.
叶青青补充表示，人工智能眼镜目前所提供的摄影、翻译、导航等功能，智能手机都能轻松实现，用户很难在新鲜感过后，继续长期使用。行业应该更多聚焦在发挥此类眼镜的独特功能上，包括第一人称交互、实时感知和主动服务，从而探索更多融入日常生活的应用场景。
As AI glasses gain more capabilities, legal and privacy concerns also loom larger.
随着人工智能眼镜功能日益增多，相关的法律和隐私问题也愈发突出。
Peng Jing, a lawyer from Chongqing Municipality in southwest China, warned that the ability of AI glasses to record video and audio in public challenges existing consent frameworks under China's personal information protection law.
重庆律师彭静指出，人工智能眼镜在公共场合录制视频和音频的能力，对我国《个人信息保护法》下现有的知情同意规则发出挑战。
"If AI glasses lose the bottom line of privacy security, the faster they spread, the greater the social risks become," Peng said, urging future judicial practice and interpretations to clarify usage rules and set a clear "red line" for healthy industry development.
彭静表示“：若人工智能眼镜丢失隐私安全的底线，那么它普及得越快，带来的社会风险就越大。”同时她呼吁，应敦促未来的司法实践和解释明确使用规则，为行业健康发展划定明确“红线”。
Some industry leaders remain cautious about how soon AI glasses will become household products. Xu Chi, founder and CEO of homegrown smart glasses maker XREAL, likened the current state of the industry to the smartphone market in 2005 and 2006, before the launch of the iPhone. "The ecosystem is extremely fragmented," he said at a recent tech fair in Shanghai in east China.
对于AI眼镜何时能成为家用产品这个问题，部分行业领军人物仍持谨慎态度。本土智能眼镜制造商XREAL的创始人兼CEO徐驰,将当前该行业现状比作iPhong问世前，也就是2005年和2006年时的智能手机市场。近期，他于上海科技博览会上表示“当前行业生态极其分散。”
"The 'iPhone moment' for the AI glasses industry has yet to arrive and will require further technological breakthroughs and innovation," he said.
他表示：“AI眼镜行业的‘iPhone时刻’尚未到来，行业内仍需进一步的技术突破和创新。”
Li Hongwei, founder and CEO of RayNeo, an AI glasses company located in Shenzhen, offered a more specific timeline. "I think 2025 was not the breakout year. Perhaps 2026 is the beginning, and 2027 and 2028 will be the 'iPhone moment'," Li said, suggesting that achieving mass adoption may take a bit longer.
深圳AI眼镜企业雷鸟创新创始人兼CEO李宏伟则对此提出了具体时间。他表示：“我认为2025年并非爆发元年。也许2026年才是开端，而2027年至2028年将会是真正的‘iPhone时刻’。”这就意味着实现大规模普及可能还需要一段时间。
Official data shows that in 2025, the core AI industry in China had exceeded 1.2 trillion yuan in scale, while featuring more than 6,200 enterprises. AI glasses, notably, have emerged as one of the trendiest products in this booming sector.
官方数据显示，2025年中国人工智能核心产业规模已超1.2万亿元，相关企业数量超6200家。值得注意的是，人工智能眼镜已成为这一蓬勃发展领域中的热门产品。
Earlier this month, China's Minister of Industry and Information Technology Li Lecheng called AI a "powerful incremental driver" of the country's economic development, adding that China will advance "AI + manufacturing" and cultivate distinctive AI agents in 2026.
本月早些时候，中国工业和信息化部部长李乐成称人工智能是中国经济发展的“强大增长动力”。他还补充道，中国将于2026年推动“AI制造”，并有意培育特色人工智能主体。
AI glasses may end up offering a clear view of how AI evolves in the market and reshapes China's economy.
也许人们能够通过人工智能眼镜来清楚地了解人工智能在市场中的发展路径。中国经济格局可能也会因此重构。
