By futureTEKnow | Editorial Team
The smart glasses landscape is about to shift dramatically. Mentra, a San Francisco-based startup, has just raised $8 million to launch MentraOS 2.0, an open-source operating system purpose-built for smart glasses. This funding round attracted major Silicon Valley names, including founders from Pebble and Y Combinator, as well as investment arms of Toyota and Amazon.
Mentra’s vision is bold: to become the “Android for smart glasses”—a foundational software layer for the next generation of lightweight XR (Extended Reality) devices. CEO Cay Pierce emphasizes that, despite the hardware advances in XR, there’s still no universal operating system for smart glasses. MentraOS aims to fill that gap, supporting extended use, real-time AI, and cloud-based applications across a variety of hardware.
Key features include:
Live captioning
Translation
AI assistant integration
Compatibility with multiple hardware platforms
Unlike tech giants such as Meta and Google, which favor tightly controlled, vertically integrated ecosystems, Mentra is betting on openness, modularity, and practicality. The open SDK allows developers to build cross-device applications, while the Mentra App Store supports simultaneous app operation, leveraging real-time sensor data and user context—crucial for all-day wearable use.
Mentra’s App Store revenue model is inspired by Apple and Google, but with a more developer-friendly revenue share. The company wants hardware makers to adopt MentraOS, giving users access to a genuine ecosystem of third-party apps. Developers can already build for a range of devices, including hardware from Vuzix and the upcoming Mentra Live glasses kit, set to ship this fall at $249. Caption-enabled display glasses are expected in early 2026, priced between $339 and $599 depending on features.
MentraOS already powers applications for live translation, proactive AI reminders, and language learning. With the launch of camera-equipped Mentra Live glasses, expect a surge in visual AI applications—from real-world games and AI tour guides to fitness assistants and culinary coaches. The company’s growing developer community, now over 4,000 strong, is a testament to the excitement around this open XR platform.
Mentra’s journey started seven years ago when Pierce, inspired by research on the benefits of live captions for learning, tried to build a captions app for glasses—only to find no suitable software framework existed. That realization sparked the creation of MentraOS. Now, with significant funding and a passionate team, Mentra is poised to become the software backbone for the next generation of wearable computing.
Smart glasses are finally ready for their “Android moment.” With MentraOS, the XR ecosystem is opening up, and developers—and users—stand to benefit.
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