The Meta Connect 2026 showed a direction that goes far beyond the launch of new devices.
Meta is building an ecosystem in which Virtual Reality, Mixed Reality and Artificial Intelligence are becoming less dependent on smartphones, computers and traditional headsets, and increasingly integrated into devices designed to be used throughout the day.
Among the announcements made on September 23 and 24, two are particularly interesting for those who, like Metagate, work with Mixed Reality every day: the new Meta VR Glasses and Muse Charm.
Two very different products, but both moving in the same direction: making immersive technology and AI lighter, more natural and more accessible.
What Meta unveiled at Connect 2026
This year's Connect focused mainly on three ecosystems: AI, smart glasses and VR.
Meta announced the arrival of Muse on its AI glasses, expanded its range of Ray-Ban, Oakley and Meta Glasses, and introduced new tools for developers.
For the XR world, however, the most interesting announcement concerns a new form factor.
Meta VR Glasses: a headset trying to become a pair of glasses
The new Meta VR Glasses represent a significant change compared with Quest.
They weigh around 100 grams, compared with roughly half a kilogram for Meta Quest 3. To achieve this, Meta moved the processor, battery and memory into a small external puck connected to the glasses by cable.
They feature micro-OLED displays, eye tracking, hand tracking, full-color passthrough and spatial audio. Hands and gaze therefore become the main input methods, while controllers remain compatible but optional.
The announced price is $1,299.99, with availability expected in spring 2027.
So this is not yet a product immediately aimed at the mass market.
But the most interesting aspect may be its weight.
Making Mixed Reality easier to wear
Meta Quest 3 has already shown how advanced standalone Mixed Reality can be. However, a physical barrier still remains.
For a short demo, headset weight has relatively little impact. For training, cultural visits, work or longer sessions, comfort and pressure on the face become much more important.
Reducing the device from around half a kilogram to roughly 100 grams could therefore make these experiences more accessible to people who are less familiar with technology, museum visitors, professionals and users who do not approach immersive technology through gaming.
The real potential of VR Glasses is therefore to reduce the gap between wearing an XR device and simply wearing a pair of glasses.
What this means for Metagate
The announcement is particularly relevant for OpenGate XR.
OpenGate is developed for Meta Quest and makes it possible to bring images, videos, PDFs, audio and 3D models into physical space, creating interactive and multiplayer Mixed Reality scenes.
Meta has confirmed that VR Glasses will use the same operating system, the same Store and the same SDKs as the Quest ecosystem.
This does not mean that a Quest app can be transferred automatically, but it avoids the creation of a completely separate ecosystem.
For Metagate, this means being able to build on the work already completed and adapt it to a new device.
OpenGate already uses hand tracking as its main interaction method. On VR Glasses, hands and gaze take on an even more central role.
It will therefore become increasingly important to work on simple interfaces, gaze interaction, gestures, direct interaction with 3D objects and scenes designed for longer sessions.
There are also trade-offs: the announced field of view is smaller than that of Quest 3, which means some elements of the interface and spatial design will need to be reconsidered.
Muse Charm: when AI moves beyond the smartphone
The other interesting device is Muse Charm.
Meta presented it as a small pocket-sized device designed for voice interaction with Muse, the company's new personal agent.
For now, we still know relatively little about its specifications, price and availability, but the concept itself is significant.
AI is starting to have its own hardware.
Interaction no longer has to begin by opening an app or typing a request. It can become vocal, ambient and continuous.
Muse will also come to Meta's AI glasses, where it will be able to use what the user is looking at as part of the context of the conversation.
From AI avatars to AI in physical space
This evolution is also directly relevant to Metagate.
OpenGate already makes it possible to place AI-powered 3D avatars in physical space and interact with them through voice.
Muse takes the concept one step further: the agent can work across multiple devices and make use of external tools and services.
Meta is also introducing Meta AI Connectors, which allow external services to make certain functions available to the agent through APIs and MCP.
In the future, a Mixed Reality experience may therefore do more than simply contain an AI avatar.
It could itself become a tool used by AI.
A technician could ask to visualize a 3D model of a component in physical space. A museum could call up specific content. A training environment could adapt instructions and information to the user.
In this scenario, AI and Mixed Reality become parts of the same interface: AI understands the request, while Mixed Reality brings information and content directly into physical space.
Towards a broader audience
Meta Connect 2026 does not remove all the barriers to widespread XR adoption.
VR Glasses remain expensive, rely on an external puck and involve some compromises compared with Quest 3. Muse Charm, meanwhile, is still a product we know relatively little about.
The direction, however, is clear.
Quest has reduced the cost of access to Mixed Reality. AI glasses are making it more normal to use cameras, microphones and AI assistants throughout the day. VR Glasses are now trying to reduce weight and bulk, while Muse aims to make interaction with Artificial Intelligence increasingly natural.
Mixed Reality is changing shape
Meta does not present VR Glasses as a replacement for Quest.
The two form factors will probably continue to coexist: more traditional headsets for certain experiences, and lighter devices when comfort and immediacy are the priority.
For Metagate, the work already developed on Quest therefore retains its value and becomes the foundation from which to design this evolution.
The goal remains the same: to transform physical space into a digital interface, where 3D content, people, data and Artificial Intelligence can coexist and interact naturally. What is changing is simply the device needed to access it.