Meta May Attempt to Repair Its Tarnished Privacy Reputation at Connect 2026.
Meta Connect 2026 is just around the corner. Like other annual tech events like Made by Google or Apple’s fall event , Connect is a chance for Meta to showcase the hardware and AI tools it plans to launch over the next year. The company may have started out as a single social media platform, but it now dominates or competes in several tech fields, including virtual reality headsets, LLMs, and, most recently, personal AI agents thanks to the arrival of Muse AI . Here’s what I expect to see at Meta Connect 2026.
Could Meta’s new smart glasses be more privacy-friendly?
While the company will undoubtedly announce new AI developments this week, Meta Connect 2026 will likely also draw attention to its hardware division. Meta is well known (perhaps even infamous) for its smart glasses , so it’s only logical that the company would make relevant announcements during a major tech event. But the most important point may not be so much “progress” as improvement.
According to PCMag , Meta plans to announce camera-free smart glasses at Connect 2026. These glasses, codenamed “Luna,” will use a six-microphone array instead of cameras to implement AI functions. This means you’ll be able to ask Meta AI questions or issue commands to Muse AI without relying on cameras to gather information about the world around you.
Meta’s most popular smart glasses currently feature built-in cameras, so why the change? It’s likely not to offer users a “budget” smart glasses option. Rather, Meta is responding to growing dissatisfaction with its current smart glasses with built-in cameras . It turns out that despite the popularity of these glasses, many people dislike the idea of being secretly recorded wherever they are. The problem has been exacerbated by an underground industry of hackers seeking to disable the recording indicator on Meta smart glasses, making it even more difficult to determine if someone is secretly recording you.
To Meta’s credit, the company has already responded to these “critics.” The company has reportedly fixed the vulnerability exploited by hackers, so users can no longer bypass the recording indicator: if the LED is blocked, Meta smart glasses should now disable video recording. Releasing camera-free smart glasses may be another step in this direction, but it won’t change the fact that smart glasses with built-in cameras remain readily available and easy to miss. While people can take steps to protect their privacy in the face of these cameras, it’s a truly challenging task.
Meta’s PR problems aren’t limited to smart glasses. The company recently settled a major lawsuit for nearly $18 billion , ending litigation in most states. The lawsuit alleged that Meta’s platforms were harmful and addictive to children and teens, and in addition to financial compensation, Meta is now changing the rules for underage users on its platforms. This comes just before the release of The Social Reckoning , a dramatization of Meta whistleblower Frances Haugen’s revelations about the company in The Wall Street Journal’s “The Facebook Files” investigation. Meta also recently abandoned an Instagram feature that allowed anyone to create AI-powered images from your public photos. Meta Connect 2026 could be a reboot of sorts for Meta in a rather bleak environment.
Meta can finally announce the release of its Phoenix mixed reality glasses.
Meta could also use the opportunity to announce its long-rumored “Phoenix” mixed reality glasses. Why in quotation marks? According to rumors , this device will be more of a headset than Meta’s current smart glasses, with a design reminiscent of protective goggles, or perhaps something resembling “bulky glasses.”
However, Phoenix is expected to be more portable and practical than the company’s Meta Quest VR headset. Phoenix could use an external “compute module” to handle complex processes, making the headset lighter than it otherwise would be. It could also run HorizonOS, the same operating system as the Meta Quest headset. This would give you the best of both worlds: a high-quality mixed reality experience without the need for a bulky headset.
Meta may announce news and updates in the field of artificial intelligence.
While Meta Connect will likely focus on hardware, artificial intelligence will likely also be a significant part of the presentation. Expect more information about Muse AI, the company’s new AI agent that can perform tasks on your behalf—even if Meta simply takes the opportunity to tout the feature. Meta may also announce a new version of Llama, the company’s flagship AI model, which hasn’t been updated since April 2025, although I haven’t seen any specific rumors on this.
How to watch Meta Connect 2026
The Meta Connect 2026 conference will span two days: September 23 and 24. However, the main presentation will take place on the first day: Wednesday, September 23, at 4:00 PM PT (7:00 PM ET). You can access the live stream on the official Meta Connect website , although the stream is currently unavailable. (The Meta website does offer a “register” option to watch the live stream, but it appears the system is designed to notify you when the stream becomes available.)