EssilorLuxottica sells 7 million AI glasses in 2025, tripling sales as Meta partnership surges

EssilorLuxottica Growth Propelled by Boom in Meta Glasses Sales

EssilorLuxottica SA reported an 18% surge in fourth-quarter sales, riding a boom in demand for AI-powered glasses that far surpassed analysts' estimates. Revenue totaled €7.6 billion ($9 billion) in the holiday period, the world's biggest eyewear maker said Wednesday in a statement. Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg had expected a more than 11% sales jump, on the same constant currency basis reported by EssilorLuxottica. The company's Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley smart glasses with partner Meta Platforms Inc. have gained traction with consumers, staking the alliance to a lead in the emerging wearable-tech category. EssilorLuxottica didn't break out profit for the fourth quarter, but said it sold more than 7 million pairs of AI glasses in 2025. The costs of quickly scaling up production have raised investor concerns about EssilorLuxottica's profit margins, leading to an about 22% decline in the French-Italian company's shares since highs set in November. The company sought to assure investors that the AI glasses wouldn't permanently dent margins. "Looking ahead to the next five years, we are committed to delivering solid revenue growth, with the adjusted operating profit's pace broadly aligned," Chief Executive Officer Francesco Milleri and Deputy CEO Paul Du Saillant said in the statement. For all of 2025, adjusted operating income rose 6.8% to €4.5 billion, also beating analysts' views. Still, tariffs and the ramp-up of AI glasses sales had an effect on profit margins, accelerating in the second half. For the full year, adjusted margin was 16%, 70 basis points below 2024 at constant exchange rates, the company said. Meta said in January that it delayed an international expansion of the latest $799 Meta Ray-Ban Display models, introduced in the US in September, because of short supplies. Bloomberg reported in January that Meta was seeking to double production capacity to 20 million units or more this year. Under Milleri, who is also chairman, EssilorLuxottica has targeted a range of eyewear innovations, leveraging its research and manufacturing clout through retail chains such as LensCrafters and Sunglass Hut. The progress spanned all regions and included initiatives in areas such as myopia management and hearing-enhanced frames. Sales in North America advanced 24% in the fourth quarter, while Europe and Asia each topped 10% on a constant-currency basis.

Ray-Ban maker EssilorLuxottica says it more than tripled Meta AI glasses sales in 2025

The French-Italian eyewear brand said it sold over 7 million AI glasses last year. That's up from the 2 million that the company sold in 2023 and 2024 combined, according to its quarterly report last February. The figure reported Wednesday includes smart glasses sold under the brands for Ray-Ban and Oakley, the latter of which was unveiled in June. The company's smart glasses success is the latest sign that the adoption of wearable AI devices is gaining momentum with consumers. "Our success in wearables is helping to propel the AI-glasses revolution, with our iconic brands being a powerful driver of demand," the company said in a release. EssilorLuxottica has been working on the wearable devices with the social media company since 2019, CNBC reported at the time. The two companies launched the first edition of the glasses in September 2021, but the device didn't gain widespread attention until the second-generation launch in 2023. Most recently, EssilorLuxottica and Meta introduced a new Ray-Ban iteration, controllable through hand gestures and neural technology, in September. That device retails for $799 and features a small display in one of the lenses. Meta has indicated its commitment to working with the glasses maker and extended a long-term partnership agreement to "collaborate into the next decade" in 2024. Last month, Bloomberg reported that Meta and EssilorLuxottica were discussing doubling production to at least 20 million by the end of this year to meet growing demand.