EssilorLuxottica's Ray-Ban smart glasses sales surge, but stock falls 30% as investors demand proof the company can grow without shrinking profits

EssilorLuxottica, the world's largest eyewear maker, has become a first-mover in AI-powered glasses through its partnership with Meta on Ray-Ban smart glasses. Recent quarterly results show these glasses are driving company growth, but the stock has dropped over 30% from its November peak as investors worry the company cannot scale this business while keeping profit margins healthy.

Ray-Ban smart glasses use AI to process what the camera sees — they can identify objects, answer questions about surroundings, and handle real-time translations. Unlike traditional glasses, these require ongoing AI processing (inference — the step where an AI produces an answer) that gets more expensive as more people use them, which is why investors are concerned about profitability at scale.

For eyewear shoppers and businesses selling glasses, this matters because the smart glasses market is about to get crowded — new competitors are entering the sector, which will likely push down prices and force EssilorLuxottica to choose between losing market share or accepting lower profit margins. This same pressure will trickle down to what you pay for smart glasses in the next 2–3 years.