UAE's etisalat starts selling Meta smart glasses to boost wearables base

Show caption: Meta said privacy is built into its smart glasses and it wil…

Ray-Ban and Oakley glasses come with built-in privacy, Facebook parent says

The National

November 10, 2026

• Etisalat has become the first telecom company in the Middle East and North Africa to offer Meta smart glasses, starting at Dh1,160.
• The AI-powered glasses support real-time translation, hands-free calls, search queries, photo capturing, video recording and audio functions.
• Options include standard Meta Glasses, second and third generation Ray-Ban Meta Glasses and Oakley Meta HSTN performance glasses.
• "AI wearables are opening up a new way for people to interact with technology, making access more immediate, intuitive and hands-free," said Tamer Eltoni, senior vice president at etisalat UAE.

UAE telecoms group etisalat has started offering artificial intelligence-powered smart glasses from Meta Platforms, as it aims to broaden its wearable technology base.

The smart glasses from the Facebook parent and Ray-Ban maker EssilorLuxottica start at Dh1,160 ($316), Abu Dhabi-based etisalat said in a statement on Tuesday.

Options include the standard Meta Glasses, the second and third generation Ray-Ban Meta Glasses and Oakley Meta HSTN performance glasses.

They are able to perform smart functions, from real-time translation in a number of languages and recommendations to search queries to hands-free calls, photo capturing and video recording, and audio.

Etisalat says it is the first telecom company in the Middle East and North Africa to offer the Meta smart glasses, serving as “another step in expanding Etisalat UAE’s device portfolio around how people progressively want to live, work, create and stay connected”, said Tamer Eltoni, senior vice president at etisalat UAE.

“AI wearables are opening up a new way for people to interact with technology, making access more immediate, intuitive and hands-free,” he said.

California-based Meta has said privacy is built into its glasses and that it will continue strengthening its protections. In the UAE, owning smart glasses is permitted but using their recording features without consent can result in penalties.

Aside from the Meta smart glasses, etisalat also offers smartwatches and smart rings.

The telecoms company is pushing for AI-led growth, with the launch of a strategic project to develop and expand digital infrastructure capacity within the UAE and abroad.

Etisalat has also announced a commercial service that increases upload speeds to smartphones threefold, boosting the UAE's push towards the next-generation 6G standard for mobile communications.

Updated:

November 10, 2026, 1:02 PM