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Google Sets Hardware and UI Standards for Android XR Glasses With Glimmer

The new specification outlines mandatory controls, gesture mappings and optics‑aware design rules that manufacturers will follow as consumer smart glasses arrive in 2026.

Overview

  • Google’s platform documentation defines two device classes—audio‑first AI Glasses and Display AI Glasses with a small screen—establishing how upcoming products should be built.
  • All models must include a power control, a touchpad and a camera button, with display units adding a dedicated Wake/Sleep control; a touch‑and‑hold on the touchpad summons Gemini.
  • Display glasses run the Glimmer interface featuring a lockscreen‑like Home view and a persistent system bar showing time, weather, alerts, chips, notifications and assistant feedback.
  • Optics guidance details one‑meter projected, additive displays that cannot render true black, recommends neutral palettes and unfilled icons to reduce halation and heat, and tunes motion and typography for legibility.
  • Google released Jetpack Compose Glimmer components and a Figma kit for developers, and reporting suggests partners such as Samsung are preparing devices to these specs with display models expected after AI Glasses.