What you need to know
- Microsoft EVP and Consumer CMO, Yusef Mehdi has commented on the future of Surface in a recent interview.
- When asked where he thinks Surface might go next, Mehdi suggests the company is fascinated by wearable AI technology that can see the world.
- Gadgets like smart glasses or the Humane AI pin may be where the company is headed next with Surface.
Microsoft may be interested in exploring wearable AI technology under the Surface moniker in the future, if a recent interview with Microsoft’s EVP and Consumer CMO, Yusef Mehdi is anything to go by. In a discussion with YouTuber Austin Evans, Mehdi suggests that devices that you wear on your person is an area that Microsoft is open to exploring.
When asked which areas Mehdi thinks will be interesting for Surface to focus on in the future, he responds:
“I do think that these devices that see the world, that you wear on your body, on your person — I think that those combined with the AI will be very valuable. It can do image recognition, it can tell you [and] talk to you about what’s going on. I think that’s a fascinating place that we’ll go.”
Wearable AI technology has been a mixed bag thus-far. We’ve seen failed attempts from devices like the Humane AI pin, which launched in a poor state with a high price tag. On the flipside, there’s wearable technology like Meta’s Ray Ban or X-REAL smart glasses, which were positively reviewed and appear to be quite popular.
It’s unclear which kind of wearable devices Microsoft is interested in exploring. The company has dabbled with wearable tech in the past with the Surface Headphones and Surface Earbuds, as well as HoloLens and the Microsoft Band. All four of those product lines are now dead, and so it will be interesting to see what Microsoft tries next in this field.
A wearable Copilot pin or glasses under the Surface moniker would be a curious path for Microsoft to explore, but if the company thinks wearable AI tech is the future, it has no choice but to experiment in this realm if it wants to position Copilot as a serious competitor in the AI space among Siri, Gemini, ChatGPT, and others.
