ByteDance halted Doubao AI glasses project internally in February, with R&D investment exceeding 50 million yuan, having previously denied shipping rumors

ByteDance has internally confirmed the suspension of the Doubao AI Glasses project in February, according to 1M AI News. The product line will no longer be pursued as a definitive direction within the visible cycle. The project was previously developed jointly by ByteDance and OEM manufacturer Longqi Technology. The glasses weigh less than 50 grams, feature a self-developed spatial algorithm chip, and have a starting price under 2,000 yuan. The original plan was to release the non-display version in the first quarter of 2026, followed by the display version in the fourth quarter. Longqi’s minimum order quantity was 1 million units, and ByteDance had invested over 50 million yuan in R&D for this project. In January, Blue Whale News reported that the product was “about to ship,” but on the same day, Doubao officials denied this, stating, “The rumors are false; there are no clear sales plans at the moment.” The main reason for the suspension is ByteDance’s internal assessment that AI glasses currently cannot achieve true differentiation. The glasses follow a no-display approach, with voice as the primary interaction method, overlapping significantly with the features of ByteDance’s Ola Friend AI earphones (priced at 1,199 yuan) launched in 2024. Industry-wise, Meta’s smart glasses are expected to sell over 7 million units globally in 2025, capturing 73% of the market share, making it difficult for latecomers to create fundamental hardware differences. Previously, Vivo also halted its AI glasses project for similar reasons: “difficult to differentiate.”