Baidu has made a bold move into the smart glasses market with the announcement of its Xiaodu AI Glasses at Baidu World 2024. Powered by Baidu’s Ernie language model, the glasses mark the company’s strategic step into AI-enhanced wearables. The launch comes at a time when tech giants, including Meta, are vying for dominance in this emerging sector.
Xiaodu AI Glasses Features and Specs
The Xiaodu AI Glasses bring a lightweight design at 45 grams, aiming for long-term comfort. Equipped with a 16MP ultra-wide camera, the glasses capture first-person images and video, aided by AI stabilization to keep visuals smooth. The device’s audio system includes four microphones for clear voice capture and open-ear speakers to limit sound leakage.
Battery life stands out, offering over 5 hours of continuous use and up to 56 hours on standby. Quick-charge technology allows a full recharge in just 30 minutes, making it practical for users needing a fast turnaround. The integration of Baidu’s Ernie model powers the device’s real-time Q&A, object recognition, and multilingual translation capabilities.
Understanding Baidu’s AI Capabilities
The Xiaodu AI Glasses leverage Baidu’s Ernie model, a large language processing system built for context-aware interactions. Ernie, or Enhanced Representation through Knowledge Integration, is designed to handle nuanced user queries and provide immediate, contextually relevant responses.
The model supports advanced functions like allowing users to pose questions while walking and receive spoken answers. Retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) further boosts Ernie’s reliability, reducing errors by sourcing up-to-date external data.
Practical Applications and Everyday Use
The glasses go beyond typical smart wearable features by incorporating calorie recognition technology that estimates the nutritional content of visible food items.
The “object encyclopedia” function provides information about objects in the user’s field of view, acting as an on-the-go educational tool. In academic or professional scenarios, users can point at text to create smart notes, while travelers can benefit from Baidu Maps integration for location-based guidance.
The Competition: Meta’s Ray-Ban Smart Glasses
Baidu’s entry into this market draws inevitable comparisons with Meta’s Ray-Ban Smart Glasses. Meta’s glasses, featuring a 12MP camera that supports video recording at 1440 x 1920 pixels, focus on social connectivity, allowing users to stream directly to platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. While Meta boasts a five-microphone system for enhanced audio capture, Baidu’s four-microphone array aims to balance sound quality with the lightweight build.
Battery performance is a notable differentiator. The Xiaodu AI Glasses support over 5 hours of audio play and fully charge in 30 minutes, outperforming Meta’s 20-minute charge for a 50% battery fill and approximately 4 hours of mixed use. Pricing aligns similarly, with Baidu’s glasses expected to retail under ¥2,100 (~$290) and Meta’s starting at $299, indicating that both products target a competitive price point.
How Chinese Tech Firms are Pushing AI Boundaries
Baidu’s move comes amid a wider push by Chinese tech companies into AI-integrated consumer electronics. ByteDance’s recent entry with AI-powered earbuds highlights this trend, featuring interactive capabilities through its chatbot Doubao. Doubao has outpaced Baidu’s Ernie Bot in active user metrics, ranking as one of the most downloaded AI apps worldwide from January to August, behind apps like ChatGPT and Google Gemini.
Chinese companies are known for creating advanced consumer products at competitive prices, which may help them challenge international rivals. This strategy is evident in Baidu’s latest release.
Challenges and Market Impact
Despite these developments, Baidu has faced setbacks in recent months. The company’s stock has dropped by 26% this year, attributed to investor concerns over its AI performance and declining advertising revenue. Baidu’s primary source of income remains ad revenue from its search engine, which has seen mixed results.
