Meta Increases its Stake in EssilorLuxottica and Accelerates Smart Glasses Development

This stake, already mentioned this summer by an anonymous source quoted by Bloomberg, is now official: Meta owns at least 3% of EssilorLuxottica's capital, a member of EssilorLuxottica's board of directors has confirmed. However, neither EssilorLuxottica, Meta, nor Alphabet (Google's parent company) have publicly commented on the information at this time.

Yesterday, the announcement came at a delicate time for EssilorLuxottica: Alphabet is set to overshadow Meta with the launch of its first collection of connected glasses, scheduled for 2026. As a result, EssilorLuxottica's share price fell 4.5% on the stock markets. This is a blow for the group, which saw its share price rise 5% on the Paris Stock Exchange last summer after Bloomberg's initial revelations, reflecting investor confidence in this sector, which has had virtually no competition until now.

Meta's investment, estimated at around €3 billion, is more than just a financial gamble. It illustrates Meta's desire to establish a long-term presence in the ecosystem of the glasses of the future, particularly connected models. Since 2019, Meta and EssilorLuxottica have been collaborating on the development of smart glasses, combining vision, digital technologies, sensors, artificial intelligence, and video. The project came to fruition with the first Ray-Ban Meta glasses released in 2023, followed by the Oakley Meta models launched this summer, a new category of Performance AI glasses designed for athletes and fans.

According to the EssilorLuxottica board member, Meta's stake could reach up to 5% in the future. For now, the tech giant has not requested a seat on the board, suggesting that this is primarily a strategic and financial investment, rather than a takeover with the aim of gaining control.

For EssilorLuxottica, the stakes are high: to benefit from the technological and software power of a Silicon Valley giant, while accelerating the industrialization and distribution of connected glasses on a large scale in international markets. For its part, Meta is securing its production chain for its connected glasses and preparing for a future where smart glasses could one day rival smartphones.

This official confirmation of the partnership is likely to reassure investors at a sensitive time. In addition to the announcements by Alphabet/Google, Meta could also suffer on the legal front: on December 4, the European Commission launched an antitrust investigation into the American firm. This investigation concerns the AI features on the WhatsApp messaging platform. This context could weigh on investor sentiment, despite the growth potential of the smart glasses market.