SILMO Futurology The SMART Way

SILMO 2025: A Glimpse into the Future of Smart Eyewear

This year’s SILMO 2025 was a spectacle in itself, with a dedicated area for Futurology that showcased the latest in Hi-Tech innovations. The spotlight was on smart eyewear, which drew considerable interest and a large number of delegates.

Smart Eyewear: The Future is Now

Smart eyewear is often seen as a precursor to the end of smartphones, spectacles, or even the world! But in reality, wearables are becoming a part of everyday life, whether for sport, navigation, calendars, or health. The optical industry should embrace the advancements in smart eyewear, as these products are becoming increasingly user-friendly and beneficial.

AI Integration: Enhancing Usability

The inclusion of AI in smart eyewear has taken these products to a whole new level. While the use of smart eyewear for the partially sighted and blind has been revered for years, now everyone can benefit from having knowledge at their fingertips, literally through their spectacle frames.

Imagine asking your glasses, “Speccy, what am I doing today?” and getting a reminder that it’s your anniversary and you should buy flowers for your spouse.

Or asking, “Speccy, show me the hole I’m playing on in golf,” and getting advice right on your spectacle lens projected with distance and sight lines

The possibilities are endless, and the answers are delivered privately to your ear and eye.

EssilorLuxottica and Nuance Audio: Leading the Way

The EssilorLuxottica stand was a major attraction, partly due to Meta’s announcement of Meta 2 and its variants during the previous week.

Another highlight was Nuance Audio, which offers improved hearing for those who prefer not to wear a hearing aid. Nuance Audio even won the SILMO D’Or technology award for 2025. This technology is advancing rapidly, with AI integration and camera and video capabilities expanding its uses. Last year, it was all about camera tech and Spotify music, but now it’s so much more.

The Drip-Drip of Technology

This technology is being rolled out progressively, allowing wearers to get used to it and learn how to use it. Tech enthusiasts want it all, and just because someone is hard of hearing doesn’t mean they don’t want AI tech, their Spotify playlist, and navigation assistance. It’s all coming; we just have to be patient, much like the evolution of flat-screen TV technology.