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Xreal Project Aura glasses will run on Google's Android XR OS

Xreal and Google are joining forces to compete with Meta and Apple in the smart glasses game.

Ozzie Mejia

May 20, 2025 12:05 PM

Xreal

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Facebook parent company Meta and Apple have been competing in the smart glasses space for the past few years, each looking to get a leg up in the realm of virtual and augmented reality. However, a new challenger appears to be entering the arena. Google is getting into the game thanks to hardware developer Xreal with the latter announcing a new pair of extended reality glasses known only as Project Aura that will run on the former's Android XR software.

Project Aura was revealed at the Google I/O conference, according to a report from CNBC. Android XR will open Project Aura up to the extensive Android ecosystem and also allow the glasses to run with the Gemini AI assistant. There aren't many details on Project Aura's specs at the moment, but beyond running on Android XR, it will also house Qualcomm's Snapdragon XR chip.

Project Aura is expected to be tethered, meaning they'll have to connect to another device like a compatible smartphone to run. More details on that are expected later, though a tethered connection notably sounds like a step backwards for Xreal. Xreal has been attending events like this year's CES, where the company impressed with the One Pro AR glasses. The tether-less glasses offer a virtual 171-inch display with a 120Hz refresh rate, a feat impressive enough to land it on the Shacknews Best of CES 2025 list.

More information about Project Aura is expected at this year's Augmented World Expo, which will take place in Long Beach, CA from June 10-12. For now, learn about the early details of Project Aura from the Xreal website.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?