WSJ article
The Promise: Augmented-Reality Glasses
The Problem: Inadequate Tech, Trust Issues
Anticipated Arrival: 2022
We Were Promised Mind-Blowing Personal Tech. What’s the Hold-Up?
Engineers developing headsets at major tech companies have told me we’re at least four years from AR glasses that look like Warby Parkers. Don’t like glasses? One startup, InWith Corp., says that in five to 10 years contact lenses with built-in displays will be commonplace. (I’ll believe it when I see it. I’ll be here all night, folks.) But even if the tech was available today, would we want cameras in front of our faces? “Think of the cultural problems,” says James Canton, the CEO and chairman of the Institute for Global Futures. “Do we want a ‘Minority Report’ experience where there’s info popping up all over a retail store?” And in light of recent disclosures, do we really want to give companies like Facebook access to our literal worldview?
