Zuckerberg Thinks That Smartphones Will be Obsolete by the 2030s
What’s the next big thing after smartphones? That’s the question many of us ponder, and many try to answer what will replace our handy devices in the future. However, for Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, he envisions a future of vision-first computing, consisting of wearables like augmented reality smart glasses, which will eventually make smartphones obsolete. He is doubling down on this prediction.
The idea of smartphones being overtaken by wearables, such as smart glasses, smartwatches, and even brain implants, has been circulating for some time now. Prominent tech figures, such as Meta’s CEO, foresee a future without our smartphones, but with a world where smart glasses and spatial headsets, powered primarily by AI, serve as the next major platform.
How Smartphones Could Be Replaced
In an interview, Mark Zuckerberg stresses that the nature of smartphones is very unnatural, despite their advantage of portability. He believes that the current trend is shifting toward computing that won’t require constant interaction, such as using our fingers to navigate while our heads are glued to a screen. Instead, he sees a future where technology will become “more ubiquitous, more natural, and more social,” allowing us to “be able to interact with people in the world around you.”
While smartphones will eventually become obsolete, Zuckerberg pointed out that they are not going to retire soon. In the last Meta Connect event, he echoed that smart glasses will gradually replace these handheld devices, a transition he likened to that of desktop PCs. “There will come a point where your smartphone will be in your pocket more than out of it,” he said, forecasting that “I think that will happen during the 2030s.”
Meta Is Heavily Betting on Smart Glasses
We should also note that Zuckerberg’s prediction aligns with Meta’s current push into the metaverse and AR. It has been making VR Meta headsets for a while now, but its success has been particularly notable with smart glasses through the Ray-Ban Meta series.
The Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, which are the spiritual successor to the original Ray-Ban Stories, have been selling well, and the company is expected to introduce a successor to these spectacles later this year.
Besides the current smart glasses form factor, Meta has also shown off the upscale prototype version of true AR wearables called Orion. This prototype is designed to blend digital elements seamlessly into the real world with an integrated holographic-like display and is controlled with a neural wristband.
However, Meta isn’t the only one in the race. Apple and Samsung are reportedly working on their own versions of smart glasses.
What do you think will replace smartphones? Do you believe that smart glasses will eventually be the next innovation that will be central to our lives?