蘑菇AV

AR/VR continues to evolve as a tool for marketers and retailers to develop deeper consumer engagement. Long-term growth will be helped by AI integrations and demographic shifts. And while gaming is still the top use case, smart glasses are on the rise.

The news: Snap announced its sixth-generation AR smart glasses at the 2025 Augmented World Expo (AWE). The wearables will be available to the public for the first time since 2016, potentially unlocking a new revenue stream beyond ads. The lightweight consumer smart glasses, called Specs, will launch in 2026 and include an 鈥渦ltra-powerful wearable computer.鈥� Our take: Snap鈥檚 next-gen smart glasses could diversify its revenue streams and show off its AR prowess. But unless the price tag is affordable and competitive, users may continue to just use Snapchat鈥檚 AR filters on their phones.

The news: The AR and VR headset market is rebounding, led by Meta鈥檚 success. Global headset shipments grew 18.1% YoY in Q1 2025, per the International Data Corporation鈥檚 (IDC) Augmented and Virtual Reality Headset Tracker. Meta held a 50.8% market share, up from 36.2% in Q1 2024, cementing its role as an industry leader but indicating the market could be reliant on a single player. Our take: Brands should make content that鈥檚 adaptable to both headsets and smart glasses to accommodate changing consumer interests. Investing in glasses-centric content can target consumers, while MR activations could be ideal for enterprise use cases such as training employees.

Snap doubles down on immersive brand tools: AI Lenses, creator events, and AR vending machines highlight its experiential marketing push.

Sponsored AI Lenses let users drop into branded scenes via selfies, offering a fast, cost-cutting alternative to AR with higher engagement potential.

AI will become deeply woven into daily life in 2025. Autonomous agents, smart devices, AR glasses, search engines, and digital twins are making AI an ambient presence in how we work, shop, browse, and interact with the world.

AI-powered search and AR try-ons promise a smoother buying journey, but with social commerce on the rise, Google has to fight for attention.

Key stat: 66% of US adults are unaware of, haven鈥檛 used, or aren鈥檛 interested in augmented reality (AR) shopping apps as of January 2024, according to a January 2025 蘑菇AV and CivicScience study.

Snap faces ad revenue headwinds despite solid Q4: AI, AR, and creator investments need to deliver as brands seek better ROI in a tight ad market.

As Samsung and Google develop mixed-reality glasses, Apple and Meta refine their ecosystems. Cheaper, lighter devices could finally push AR/VR into the mainstream.

Despite economic headwinds and challenges faced by major players, AR and VR adoption is on the rise.

While costly headsets falter, mobile AR is seeing strong momentum. Affordable solutions like Ray-Ban Meta Glasses offer promising pathways for consumer engagement.

Walmart鈥檚 adaptive retail strategy is heavy on genAI, AR: The retailer is relying on the technologies to deliver personalized experiences, engage Gen Z, and improve customer service.

AI and AR shopping tools face consumer hesitancy. Despite significant industry investment in AI and AR shopping technology, consumer adoption remains stubbornly low. Shoppers show a clear preference for traditional methods like size guides and physical returns over newer tech solutions.

Microsoft鈥檚 decision reflects declining interest in heavy headsets, with next-gen AR glasses setting the stage for wearable tech鈥檚 future.

The news: Samsung confirmed it will launch a new XR (extended reality) device in the second half of 2025, likely the long-teased Project Moohan, a device capable of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), developed in collaboration with Google and powered by Android XR, per TechRadar.