Alibaba Unveils New Qwen AI Smart Glasses to Compete With Meta

Alibaba has unveiled its next-generation Qwen Glasses N1 series, priced from 2,999 yuan ($450), as the Chinese technology giant expands its consumer hardware portfolio to bring its Qwen AI assistant to wearable devices.

Announced at an event in Hangzhou, China, the glasses feature 50-megapixel cameras, upgraded sensors and support for shopping, payments, and health tracking. The launch comes as Alibaba seeks to compete with Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses and advance its full-stack AI strategy, which spans large language models, applications, chips, and consumer hardware. The company has also introduced Qwen Clip AI earbuds, developed with Bose and priced at 1,299 yuan ($200).

“Looking ahead, intelligence should be everywhere and AI is moving aggressively into the desktop and mobile environments,” Eddie Wu, CEO of Alibaba Group, said at the Apsara Conference in September.

The new glasses integrate Qwen more closely into the user experience, allowing wearers to interact with the assistant through bone-conduction microphones. Alibaba said the devices offer up to 25 hours of standby time or nine hours of music playback on a single charge. The Pro edition, priced at 3,499 yuan ($500), adds eye-tracking capabilities.

The launch comes roughly a year after Alibaba introduced its first generation of smart glasses in November 2025. The updated models extend the role of Qwen beyond smartphones and computers, allowing users to access AI assistance while shopping, making payments, and tracking their health.

Alibaba is positioning the glasses against Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses, competing on hardware capabilities and AI integration. In September, Meta expanded its lineup with a camera-free model priced at $349, designed primarily for interaction with its Muse AI assistant. Alibaba’s new models retain camera functionality while adding features such as eye tracking in the Pro edition.

The launch also aligns with Wu’s broader push to develop AI capabilities across the technology stack, from large language models and chatbot applications to AI chips and consumer hardware.

Separately, Alibaba has begun selling Qwen Clip AI earbuds, developed jointly with Bose. Priced at 1,299 yuan ($200), the earbuds provide another way for consumers to access Qwen through wearable hardware.