Meta buys $3.5 billion stake in EssilorLuxottica: report

Meta Platforms has acquired a minority stake in EssilorLuxottica, the world’s largest eyewear company, worth about $3.5 billion, deepening its push into the AI-powered smart glasses market, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The Facebook and WhatsApp parent bought just under 3% of the Ray-Ban maker at current market prices and is considering raising its stake to around 5% over time, though those plans are not yet final, the report said.

Shares in EssilorLuxottica, which are listed in Paris, jumped about 3% following the publication of the report, though both companies haven’t made the deal public yet.

The likely deal strengthens a partnership that has produced Ray-Ban and Oakley smart glasses equipped with cameras and AI assistants.

The move also puts the spotlight on Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s strategy to reduce reliance on smartphone makers by building hardware and distribution channels of its own, while giving EssilorLuxottica a stronger foothold in the tech sector as wearable devices evolve into mass-market products, the Bloomberg report said.

The investment also comes as competition intensifies in the wearables space, with Apple recently launching its Vision Pro mixed-reality headset and other players like Snap continuing to develop camera-equipped glasses.

For EssilorLuxottica, the deal aligns with its effort to evolve beyond traditional optical and sunglasses into connected eyewear.

Analysts have noted that consumer adoption of smart glasses has been gradual so far, but improvements in AI assistants and miniaturized components have made the category more promising in recent years.

Meta’s broader bet on immersive hardware includes virtual reality headsets under its Quest brand and the Horizon social VR platform, though the company has cut back on some metaverse-related spending in favor of more immediate AI-driven initiatives.

Zuckerberg has argued that glasses, more than bulky headsets, represent the long-term form factor that could make everyday augmented reality mainstream.