00:00I have to say, David and I, we have tried your glasses on before.
00:04It was at a conference and someone was wearing them and we asked to try them out.
00:09And we were able to kind of read live translations on the lens.
00:13And it was just very cool for all news readers and anchors like ourselves, Wang Lee.
00:18Tell us a bit more about sort of the use factor for all this as well.
00:23Who is your target customer and really how is the outlook for the industry?
00:30Yeah, thank you for having me here.
00:32And yes, our strategy is to build smart glasses that people can actually wear every day.
00:37As you already tested it all and also I'm wearing this.
00:40We believe the next phase of computing is not starting.
00:42It's very bulky headset about with light.
00:45With light weight everywhere that fits naturally into the daily life.
00:48So for us, the growth comes from the three things.
00:51The better hardware is for sure and also more useful AI experience and also broader distribution.
00:56We are focused on products that combine optical clarity, especially for the prescription wears
01:01and also comfort, battery life and also discrete design.
01:05And also for the business is strong because I think right now people and consumers are already
01:10shifting from the interesting gadget to practical variables, especially for productivity like
01:15other real, like really, really practical features and also real-time information.
01:20So that's where we are here and also we are launching the glasses.
01:26The first generation is around like 24 August.
01:29And last year we have the second generation.
01:31And also right now we are, although still early in the category, but apart from our website,
01:37we already have more than 500 global premium optical shops, including in Hong Kong,
01:43including in Singapore, in Japan, in a lot of European countries.
01:46So apart from that, we also grow really quickly in the consumer-tronic shops, like the Media
01:51Mark, Finnex, like Udobashi in Japan.
01:55So I think for us, the interest from consumers and the market is really growing really fast.
02:01But we need to do the product in the right way.
02:04Right.
02:06It's a new-ish segment.
02:08It's new, but it's not very, very new.
02:10And, you know, there are lots of players in the market, as you know, Wang Li.
02:14So I'm curious, what do you think sets you apart?
02:16What's different about your product lineup than what's available in the market?
02:22Yeah.
02:22I think the market right now is like the competition definitely is increasing.
02:27But definitely there are, I mean, three paths that different companies are going for.
02:34The first one definitely is camera glasses.
02:36And also definitely Meta is investing by far the most in the market.
02:39And also the second category is the display glasses as wear in the market.
02:44And the third one probably is the hybrid, one that both have the camera and also display together.
02:50But I think for us, like the people that are wearing camera glasses, they already arise a lot of concerns
02:58about the privacy, about their, like, social isolation kind of thing.
03:04So we think that the biggest challenge for all the glasses that are there for the everyday
03:09definitely is due to the comfort, better life, privacy, and also optical performance,
03:14and also prescription support, and finding use cases that are frequently enough to become a really habit.
03:20So for us, like, camera glasses may appeal to some consumers, but they also create privacy.
03:26Concerned that, as I said, well, the mass majority of tech giants, they are right now focusing on the capturing,
03:32which means mounting camera on people's face for filming or for social isolation.
03:36They are not only facing, I think, a massive privacy reckoning and also legal lawsuits,
03:41but also overjoying the public's trust.
03:43So for us, we believe the glasses in everyday life should be, like, utility of information,
03:50helping people deal with their daily life, to do work.
03:53So by removing the redundant cameras and also focus on discrete display and information processing,
04:01we don't report the user's past.
04:03We only uncover their present.
04:05So, yes, I think computation is increasing, but the category is still wide open
04:09because we have different paths of the roadmap.
04:13The path to the roadmap.
04:16It's interesting, right?
04:17The real use sort of case for these smart glasses is not about novelty anymore, as you say, Wang Li.
04:23I think Google was one of the latest that unveiled these AI glasses,
04:26saying they're close to an inflection point in this market of mass adoption.
04:32Are you starting to see more mass adoption in this space, and what's going to get it there?
04:41Yeah, I think for the mass adoption, first of all, definitely product needs to be really catering
04:48to the consumer's needs in their daily life.
04:51But for the needs in their daily life, definitely we do not want the cameras to have, like,
04:56filming the others every day, every time, right, even though the camera is not turned off or turned down.
05:03So, I think for the real-time, like, assistance, because it's a variable,
05:09so it can help you with your real-time assistance.
05:12For that part, definitely we need context, we need AI, we need the, like, teleprompter,
05:17translation, navigation kind of real practical features to help consumers
05:21to shift their graphic UI-UX interaction with your phone, with your laptop,
05:26to a more conversational-based UI.
05:29That is really, like, depending on the development of AI and agentic AI.
05:34And also, I think for the mass adoption, definitely, apart from the product itself,
05:39definitely the prescription service offline, and also the distribution channel offline.
05:44For example, the optic channel and also healthcare channel offline will help to,
05:49because people can actually feel the product, not seeing that from online, from other videos,
05:54so they can actually feel the product and then buy them if they have the really practical needs.
06:00So, I think in that case, definitely the channel is ready, and also the product is evolving, right?
06:06So, we need to evolve it in the right way, not to, like, trust.
06:11Trust, I think, probably will be the biggest issue since the new category and different companies want their different, like,
06:17agenda,
06:17developing all the glasses or all the variables out there.
06:24Wang Li, very quickly, please, are you raising money?
06:28Any plans to list?
06:29What is that separate path looking like for your company?
06:34Wang Li, Yeah, we started this company in 2003.
06:39So, right now, we already are unicorn status valuation in terms of valuation.
06:43And I think for us, like, we really focus on the product evolving development.
06:49And also, we have the global market selling really fast and really well.
06:53So, for us, I think, that being said, also, we already have the $1 billion valuation.
06:58But we do not go out of the way to broadcast valuation updates as often as a lot of other
07:04companies do.
07:05Because at this stage, we are far more focused on the product roadmap than on playing the funding headline games.
07:11So, for us, I think if we're doing the things right and build the right experience for our customers,
07:15the numbers will follow naturally in terms of the fundraising and the valuation.
07:19But for sure, I think why investors choose to invest in us and have backing us for this journey.
07:26Because I think, in their opinion, it's the same that we are the only pair of glasses they want to
07:31wear
07:31in their LP meetings, in their meetings with entrepreneurs, yeah.
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