Amazon announced on Thursday a prototype of artificial intelligence–powered smart glasses designed for its delivery drivers. The goal is to simplify the delivery process by reducing the need for drivers to look at their phones, check package labels, and scan their surroundings to find the correct address.
The “Amelia” glasses feature a built-in camera and heads-up display, and pair with a controller worn in the driver’s vest that includes a button that can be pressed to take photos of deliveries. The glasses can provide easy-to-follow directions in complex locations, such as multi-unit apartment buildings and business complexes. Amazon notes that the glasses also support prescription lenses and transitional lenses that automatically adjust to light.
While Amazon is still experimenting with the smart glasses, it plans to make them available first to drivers in North America, with a wider global rollout to follow.
The glasses can help drivers find the right packages inside their delivery vans. (Image credit: Amazon)
Amazon is the latest tech company to invest in and develop smart glasses, joining its Silicon Valley peers, including Meta. The Seattle-based e-commerce giant has not revealed any plans to make a consumer version of the “Amelia” smart glasses.
The company said it is already working on the future versions of the glasses, which will feature “real-time defect detection,” notifying the driver if a package was delivered to the incorrect address.
Amazon also unveiled a robotic arm called “Blue Jay,” which it said is designed to work alongside warehouse employees to pick items off shelves and sort them. The robot, which has been in use at a warehouse in South Carolina, is expected to help reduce injuries and maximise space utilisation in Amazon’s facilities, the company said.
Additionally, the tech giant announced a new AI tool called “Eluna,” which will provide operational insights at Amazon warehouses.
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