Alipay+ and Meizu Unveil World's First Smart Glasses with Embedded Payment Functionality

This futuristic eyewear lets you pay with a glance - say hello to the post-smartphone era

Makers say these are the first truly smart glasses for real-world transactions The idea of leaving home without your phone and still being able to buy a coffee may seem far-fetched, but this is what Alipay+ and Meizu are promising. Alipay+, a global wallet gateway service operated by Ant International, recently completed what it describes as the world's first real-world e-wallet payment via an augmented reality glass. The transaction was carried out using AlipayHK and Meizu's StarV Snap glasses in Hong Kong. The smart glasses allow payments via QR scans or voice commands, made possible by Alipay+'s AI features such as intent recognition, voice interface, and voiceprint authentication. Meizu's hardware supports these features with optical waveguide displays, noise reduction microphones, and integrated cameras. The system also supports NFC-based cards and QR payments via Alipay+'s broader technology suite. "The offline payment function of smart glasses launched overseas by Meizu and Alipay+ has set a new technological benchmark for the industry," said Peng Guo, General Manager of the XR Division of Meizu. "The innovation in the payment scenario has enhanced the practicality and appeal of smart glasses and also promoted the progress and development of the AR glasses industry. We hope this function will bring more convenient experiences to users." Yet, for all the innovation, it's fair to ask who this is for, as while the technology could appeal to early adopters and tech enthusiasts, it may be a harder sell for ordinary people. Nevertheless, Jiangming Yang, Chief Innovation Officer of Ant, claims, "...smart glasses will rapidly transform into the next-gen personal device like the mobile phone." That's a bold claim, particularly considering smart glasses haven't yet found a place in the average consumer's daily life. The best secure smartphone or even the best smartphone for business struggle to combine convenience with data security. Smart glasses add another layer of complexity, particularly around public use, user interface, and reliability. That said, the smart glasses' payment function may be more of a novel feature than an essential one, but it undoubtedly expands what wearable tech can do, even if it's not quite ready to replace your phone just yet. The rollout to Alipay+ global partners is expected later in 2025.

Alipay+ collaborates with Meizu on smart payment glasses

This content is provided by an external author without editing by Finextra. It expresses the views and opinions of the author. In collaboration with Meizu, a global industry leader, Alipay+ completed the world's first real-world smart glasses-embedded e-wallet payment transaction in Hong Kong. The successful transaction on Meizu StarV Snap smart glasses with AlipayHK, Hong Kong's leading superapp, marks another milestone in Alipay+'s advance at the forefront of global mobile payment innovation. Users are able to make seamless payments with QR scans or voice commands from their smart glasses, backed by Alipay+'s AI-powered voice interface, intent recognition, and voiceprint authentication technologies. The new feature will roll out to Alipay+ global partner e-wallets in 2025 upon the integration of Alipay+ upgraded tech suite for smart glasses. In April 2025, Meizu officially announced the global pioneer of offline AI glasses-enabled mobile payment function powered by Alipay+. Alipay+'s advanced payment SDK solutions are integrated into all new Meizu smart glasses, supported by Meizu's industry-leading optical waveguide display technology, voice noise reduction and capture technology, and camera-based code scanning technology. Alipay+ is accelerating new innovations to support e-wallets' transition into the future of seamless commerce. Today, Alipay+ connects over 1.7 bn user accounts on 36 global e-wallets, national QR schemes and banking apps to 100 million merchants across 70+ core markets. With one integration, wallet partners can access Alipay+'s expanding toolkits for customer engagement and business growth. Among these, Alipay+ now integrates QR-based and card payments via a global NFC solution. It also enables a full range of agentic AI features including MCP-based AI payments built on Alipay+ GenAI Cockpit, an AI-as-a-Service platform for fintechs. "The offline payment function of smart glasses launched overseas by Meizu and Alipay+ has set a new technological benchmark for the industry," said Peng Guo, General Manager of the XR Division of Meizu. "The innovation in the payment scenario has enhanced the practicality and appeal of smart glasses and also promoted the progress and development of the AR glasses industry. We hope this function will bring more convenient experiences to users." "We are grateful to work with industry leaders like Meizu to pioneer smart glasses-embedded payment solutions. By unlocking payment capabilities, smart glasses will rapidly transform into the next-gen personal device like the mobile phone," said Jiangming Yang, Chief Innovation Officer of Ant International. "We look forward to supporting more industry partners with one integration into Alipay+'s premium wallet ecosystem across global markets, to help them build broader user scenarios and achieve growth."

Alipay Touts World's First Smart Glasses Embedded Payment Transaction | PYMNTS.com

"Users are able to make seamless payments with QR scans or voice commands from their smart glasses, backed by Alipay+'s AI-powered voice interface, intent recognition, and voiceprint authentication technologies," Alipay said in a news release. The company added that this new feature will be introduced to Alipay+ partner e-wallets this year upon the integration of the Alipay+ upgraded tech suite for smart glasses. The news follows Meizu's announcement in April that it was working on an offline artificial intelligence (AI) glasses-enabled mobile payment function with Alipay+. Now. Alipay+'s payment SDK solutions are being integrated into all new Meizu smart glasses. "The offline payment function of smart glasses launched overseas by Meizu and Alipay+ has set a new technological benchmark for the industry," said Peng Guo, general manager of the XR Division of Meizu. "The innovation in the payment scenario has enhanced the practicality and appeal of smart glasses and also promoted the progress and development of the AR [augmented reality] glasses industry." PYMNTS wrote earlier this year about the way AI is driving a boom in the smart glasses field, as companies such as Meta, Google, Amazon and Samsung all bank on AI becoming part of their next wearable device. AI makes smart glasses "more intuitive and practical for everyday use, whether you're streaming, gaming or navigating the world around you," David Jiang, a former Google executive and CEO of smart glass company Viture, said in an interview with PYMNTS. But aside from entertainment, the embedded AI functions like a personal assistant that anticipates user needs, streamlines daily tasks and carries out activities such as ordering food or hailing a ride. Research by PYMNTS Intelligence shows that people, younger generations especially, often use connected devices to multitask. "Smart glasses provide hands-free connectivity to users, who can use the embedded AI assistant to do online searches, take photos or videos, read and write text messages, and translate foreign languages in real time, among other capabilities," PYMNTS wrote. That versatility is critical. Jiang said his time at Google offered him a firsthand look at why Google Glass didn't take off. "People didn't have a reason to wear it every day," he said, noting that today is different. "5G is here. Cloud gaming is mainstream. Streaming services are everywhere. Consumers want a better way to experience content without being tethered to a small screen."