Meta Outlines Strategy for Drastically Cutting Costs of Next-Gen AR Key Component

Meta has introduced its Orion AR glasses prototype, which comes with a hefty price tag—around $10,000 per pair. The standout feature adding to its cost is the custom silicon carbide waveguide lenses. Meta, however, believes there’s potential to drastically lower the expense of these lenses over time.

Silicon carbide isn’t new in technological spheres; it’s typically used as a substrate for high-power chips due to its efficiency and reduced heat output. Yet, it’s a challenging material to produce, presenting hurdles related to its physical properties, the crystal growth process, and manufacturing complexity. While electric vehicles are spearheading efforts to slash costs, reaching price parity with more common silicon remains a difficult goal. Quantum computing presents another opportunity too, though that’s another beast entirely compared to Meta’s aspirations with this advanced material.

What drives Meta’s interest in silicon carbide isn’t just its efficiency, but its high refractive index, which is perfect for crafting clear and wide field-of-view (FOV) waveguides—an essential component for the 70-degree FOV offered by Orion. Those who have experienced both traditional multi-layered glass waveguides and Orion’s silicon carbide alternatives describe the difference as night and day.

“Using glasses with traditional, glass-based waveguides felt like being at a disco,” explains Optical Scientist Pasqual Rivera. “Distractions abounded with rainbows everywhere. But once you switch to silicon carbide waveguides, it’s like attending a serene symphony. It changes the game entirely.”

Electric vehicles have escalated the adoption of silicon carbide chips globally, which in turn helps lower the prices. Giuseppe Calafiore, who leads the AR Waveguides Technology at Reality Labs, notes, “There’s now an overcapacity thanks to EVs, which didn’t exist when we started with Orion. This surplus, coupled with lower demand, has driven substrate costs downward.”

However, silicon carbide used in EVs isn’t suitable for optics since they focus on electronic performance, not clear visuals. Despite this, Barry Silverstein, Director of Research Science at Reality Labs, sees promising opportunities:

“Suppliers are eager to jump into the optical-grade silicon carbide market. Each waveguide lens requires significantly more material than an electronic chip and utilizes existing production capabilities. Factory optimization is crucial, and expanding those capabilities is the dream. Making larger wafers is a big aspect of this—bigger wafers mean reduced costs, albeit with more processing complexity. We’ve observed progress as suppliers move from four-inch to eight-inch wafers with potential twelve-inch wafers on the horizon, which could significantly boost AR glasses production.”

“Awareness has spread,” Silverstein adds. “We’ve shown silicon carbide’s adaptability in electronics and photonics, with future potential in quantum computing. The promise to reduce costs exists, although substantial work remains to be done. There’s enormous potential upside.”

XR headsets have historically benefitted from advancements in broader consumer industries. Think back to the early 2010s when low-cost smartphone displays ignited the consumer VR headset revolution. Take the Oculus Rift DK2; it prominently featured a Galaxy Note 3 display panel, Samsung branding and all.

Over the years, several smartphone components, like inertial measurement units, camera sensors, and battery tech, have been incorporated into these headsets. This suggests a parallel might exist for leveraging silicon carbide gains from the EV sector, although applying them to AR glasses could still pose a complex challenge.

Presently, suppliers are targeting photonics-grade silicon carbide, yet it remains a niche market that demands years to scale up adequately. This limitation is a major reason why Meta hasn’t introduced Orion commercially yet. However, Meta is treating Orion as an internal developer kit, aiming to launch consumer-friendly AR glasses—projected to cost somewhere around a high-end phone or laptop—by 2030, as mentioned by CTO Andrew Bosworth.

The puzzle will undoubtedly be pieced together eventually, given the massive consumer appeal. Industry giants like Meta, Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Qualcomm are striving to carve out parts of the next formidable mobile computing platform, which aspires to replace smartphones entirely.