Bobak Tavangar made waves in the tech world when he left his senior role at Apple to found augmented reality company Brilliant Labs in 2021. Driven by his vision for the future of AR and AI, Tavangar assembled a team of industry veterans to develop innovative new products. This ambitious startup recently unveiled its flagship offering – Frame by Brilliant Labs, feature-packed smart glasses leveraging AI capabilities like computer vision, speech recognition and more.
Frame represents a pioneering step forward for lightweight, all-day wearable tech. As Tavangar puts it, “Frame fulfills a dream I’ve had for over a decade – to create AI superpowers that are convenient and comfortable for everyday use.”
The Brilliant Founding Story
Tavangar’s fascination with augmented reality stems from his time at Apple leading development of the Apple Watch. He saw firsthand how advanced sensors could provide users timely, contextual information. However, he envisioned even more immersive and personalized experiences possible by overlaying digital information directly into the physical environment.
So in 2021, Tavangar left Apple to found Brilliant Labs. He brought together engineers from Apple, Niantic labs and other AR leaders to make his vision a reality. A seed investment from Niantic CEO John Hanke gave Brilliant the runway needed to develop hardware from the ground up.
“We knew we needed deep AR and AI expertise to reinvent the category of smart glasses – so we built a team capable of delivering that” – Tavangar
The Brilliant team worked in stealth mode for over 18 months before unveiling Frame as their first product in late 2022.
Introducing Frame: AI-Powered AR Glasses
Frame boasts a head-turning design with transparent lens displays enclosing each eye, sleek arms reaching back to the ears, and an integrated voice assistant called Noa. Weighing just slightly more than a typical pair of eyeglasses, these lightweight smart glasses aim for all-day wearability.
Frame runs multiple AI systems allowing for translation of foreign languages seen in the environment, identification of food items at mealtimes, and projection of a virtual screen for web browsing. The onboard voice assistant Noa handles commands and queries, leveraging speech recognition by Whisper.ai. Additional AI models come from providers like Perplexity AI, Stability AI, and OpenAI.
Prescription lenses can be fitted to the frames, which come in various colors and sizes for comfort. Overall, Frame aims for subtle but powerful AI enhancements personalized to the user’s needs and interests.
Key Features: AI That Fits Your Lifestyle
Frame packs impressive capabilities into a deceptively simple pair of glasses. For tourists struggling to interpret signs in a foreign country, Frame can translate text seen in the environment into the user’s preferred language. Foodies can get nutritional information and even recipes simply by looking at ingredients. Frame can pull up reviews when you look at a product in a store, or dig up more details on people met in business meetings.
More broadly, Frame allows you to search the web, capture photos & videos, check notifications, get directions or weather updates, set reminders and more – all via voice commands handled by the Noa assistant. You can also summon a virtual screen to watch videos, play games or even preview 3D models projected into the real world.
Advanced sensors on the frames track eye movements and gestures as additional inputs, alongside an array of mics and cameras. The onboard AI models infer context from visual data to drive relevant, timely suggestions and notifications. All this powers unique capabilities not found in other AR devices currently, putting Frame in a class of its own.
“Frame interprets what you see and hear to provide helpful suggestions throughout your day. It’s like having a personalized assistant enhancing your vision of the world” – Tavangar
The Road Ahead: Mainstream Adoption of AR
Brilliant Labs aims to drive mainstream adoption of augmented reality with this offering, thanks to the approachable form factor and lifestyle-centric features. However, the current $999 price tag may limit uptake in the near term. Still, the impressive hands-free capabilities unlocked by Frame’s AI integration illustrate the rich potential of AR glasses.
As the first real entrant from Brilliant Labs, Frame kicks off a new product roadmap likely to include iterative improvements and specializations. Over time, Tavangar expects continuous enhancements to capabilities like scene understanding by the onboard AI models. He hints at future offerings focused on applications like fitness, health, productivity, education and more.
By innovating in AR hardware and AI software, Brilliant Labs seems poised to shape the next paradigm shift in personal computing. Much like the Apple Watch pioneered whole new app categories, Frame could bring about an explosion of creative augmented reality use cases. The possibilities are limited only by imagination – both human creativity and AI inference working in tandem.
Tavangar concludes, “We’re just scratching the surface of what’s possible when you combine wearable hardware, spatial computing and AI. Frame foreshadows exciting innovations coming from Brilliant that will reshape the interface between technology and real life”.
Conclusion: Pioneering a New Computing Frontier
Frame smart glasses and their founding story illustrate the tremendous potential being unlocked at the intersection of AR and AI. As these exponential technologies continue advancing, they will enable personalized and contextually-aware experiences that feel like superpowers tailored to your lifestyle.
Pioneered by industry veterans like Bobak Tavangar, this new computing paradigm promises to change how we engage with information and perceive the world around us. The future looks increasingly brilliant as startups like Brilliant Labs charge ahead with innovative products pushing the boundaries of wearable tech and spatial computing. Exciting times lie ahead as augmented reality moves steadily into the mainstream!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Frame?
Frame is a pair of augmented reality smart glasses developed by startup Brilliant Labs. Powered by AI, Frame aims to overlay digital information and capabilities onto the real world.
Who founded Brilliant Labs?
Brilliant Labs was founded in 2021 by Bobak Tavangar, a former senior employee at Apple who led development of the Apple Watch.
What capabilities does Frame have?
Key capabilities of Frame include language translation, nutritional analysis of food, product information lookup, directions and navigation, web search, notifications, reminders, image/video capture and more.
What AI powers Frame?
Frame utilizes AI services from providers like Perplexity AI, Stability AI, OpenAI and Whisper. These handle capabilities like computer vision, natural language processing, speech recognition and generation.
How is Frame different from other AR glasses?
Unlike alternatives, Frame focuses on lifestyle enhancements via AI in an affordable, fashionable form factor. It also uses an open source model inviting community contributions.
Does Frame require a smartphone?
Currently Frame needs a paired smartphone for processing. However, Brilliant Labs plans to embed capabilities directly into the glasses down the road.
What is the battery life of Frame?
Brilliant Labs claims Frame glasses provide all-day battery life. Exact figures have not been shared yet.
When will Frame ship to customers?
Frame is available for pre-order now, with expected shipping starting in April 2024.
How much does Frame cost?
Frame retails for $349 currently. Subscription to AI services is free up to a point during the initial launch.
Is Frame open source?
Yes, all hardware designs, software and docs for Frame are open sourced by Brilliant Labs to spur innovation within the AR community.
