Brilliant Labs has unveiled Frame, the world’s first AI glasses with an integrated multimodal AI assistant. This innovation is backed by support from AR pioneer and Niantic CEO John Hanke, known for creating Pokémon Go. To date, Brilliant Labs has raised $6 million to advance this groundbreaking technology.
The impressive lineup of advisors and investors now includes notable names such as Brendan Iribe (cofounder of Oculus), Adam Cheyer (cofounder of Siri), and members from the original iPhone team. Under the leadership of CEO Bobak Tavangar, a former Apple executive, Frame aims to revolutionize daily living with an always-on AI assistant, Noa, comparable to Iron Man’s Jarvis.
“Frame offers a new paradigm for how humans interact with the digital world and each other,” says Tavangar. “Noa empowers users to engage more meaningfully with their surroundings, enhancing experiences in everyday life, workplaces, classrooms, and beyond. This embodies the promise of generative AI at eye level.”
Designed with an integrated multimodal AI system capable of running GPT-4, Stability AI, and Whisper AI simultaneously, Noa excels in real-world visual processing, novel image generation, and real-time speech recognition and translation. This collaboration among multiple AI systems opens up endless applications for everyday tasks.
Frame stands out not only for its technology but also as a fashion statement, inspired by iconic figures like John Lennon, Steve Jobs, and Gandhi. It seamlessly blends advanced technology into a stylish, lightweight design that resembles traditional eyeglasses.
While there are no specific augmented reality features, Frame is engineered as AI-embedded glasses, allowing users to interact with large language models (LLMs) through visual and auditory inputs. This cuts out the need for typing or uploading, enabling immediate interaction with the AI based on what users see and hear in real time.
Multimodal AI Assistant With Personality
Beneath its sleek design, Frame houses Noa, a unique AI assistant that develops its personality by analyzing interactions through a privacy-focused knowledge graph. Upon activation, users are greeted by Noa as a digital “egg” that evolves based on user responses, ultimately adopting a persona that reflects the individual’s character.
Noa's functionalities include summarizing texts, translating languages, and assisting with collaborative tasks. The glasses' built-in multimodal AI can even analyze emotional sentiment and facial expressions.
Frame redefines the traditional search engine concept, with Noa capable of scanning retail items for price checks or identifying properties during house hunting, vastly enhancing user engagement and experience.
Designed for Everyday Use
Weighing just 39 grams, Frame combines comfort and durability with a stylish vintage design available in colors like Smokey Black and Matte Cool Gray. It features a high-resolution display with 3,000 nits of brightness, a spatial camera, and an integrated microphone for advanced functionality.
In partnership with AddOptics, Frame will offer prescription lenses through a unique optical lens casting process. Pre-orders will begin in March 2024 at a retail price of $300.
A Commitment to Open Source
Building on the success of its previous product, Monocle, Brilliant Labs will emphasize Frame's availability for both consumers and developers. The company is dedicated to open-source principles, allowing developers to explore and modify the hardware and software, providing resources such as documentation and open-source codebase.
Adam Cheyer, cofounder of Siri and an investor in Brilliant Labs, noted, “Brilliant Labs' innovations, from Monocle to Frame, are inspiring. Frame is a pivotal step toward transforming societal interactions with embedded AI. It enhances our ability to organize and access information, ushering in a wave of hands-free applications reminiscent of the iPhone's early days.”
Founded in 2019 by ex-Apple employee Tavangar, with cofounders Raj Nakarja and Ben Heald, Brilliant Labs operates with a small team of three.
Regarding multimedia capabilities, Frame can capture photos and record videos primarily to support its AI functions. The design focuses on allowing users to remix visuals in real time, with data erased after use—Frame does not retain images or videos, setting it apart from platforms like Snapchat or Meta. This reinforces its primary role in enhancing AI-driven experiences rather than promoting social media sharing.