The glasses have a small digital display in the right lens for basic tasks such as notifications

Meta Platforms on Sept 17 launched its first consumer-ready smart glasses with a built-in display, seeking to extend the momentum of its Ray-Ban line, one of the early consumer hits of the artificial intelligence era.

Chief executive Mark Zuckerberg showed off what he called Meta Ray-Ban Display, although some demos of the new technology did not go as planned, with a call to the glasses failing to go through, for instance.

I don’t know what to tell you guys, he said. I keep on messing this up. The crowd applauded.

Glasses are the ideal form factor for personal superintelligence, because they let you stay present in the moment while getting access to all of these AI capabilities that make you smarter, help you communicate better, improve your memory, improve your senses, and more, Zuckerberg said.

The glasses have a small digital display in the right lens for basic tasks such as notifications. They will start at $799 and be available on Sept 30 in stores.

Zuckerberg has also touted smart glasses as the ideal device for superintelligence – a concept where AI surpasses human intelligence in every possible way – because they serve as a personal, always-on interface that can see, hear and interact with the world through the user’s perspective.

Working toward that vision, Meta also unveiled on Sept 17 a new pair of Oakley-branded glasses called Vanguard aimed at athletes and priced at $499.

The device integrates with fitness platforms such as Garmin and Strava to deliver real-time training stats and post-workout summaries and offers nine hours of battery life.

It will be available starting on October 21.

It updated its Ray-Ban line, now offering almost twice the battery life of the previous generation and a better camera at $379, higher than the previous generation’s $299 price.