For the past few years, the Las Vegas Convention Center auditorium has had a terrible installation of AR/VR/XR smart glasses. While some of the biggest names in the technology industry, such as Apple and Google, have struggled to gain traction in this space, accessible technology remains relatively untapped.
There are many things we need to do to make the space more comfortable for more people. Soliddd is one of the startups exploring the relationship between smart glasses and accessibility.
This week at CES 2025, the company will be showcasing a prototype version of its upcoming SolidddVision glasses. The Brooklyn-based startup specifically targets people with macular degeneration. According to CDC statistics, this degenerative eye disease affects approximately 13% of U.S. residents over the age of 40.
Image credit: Soliddd
The startup describes the technology as follows:
The smart glasses use Soliddd's proprietary lens array, which resembles a fly's eye, to project multiple separate images onto areas of the undamaged retina. This allows the brain to naturally construct stereopsis (creating 3D images in the brain), creating a single full-field image with good visual acuity that feels like normal focused vision. can be built.
This product is currently in beta, so it looks quite different from the renderings Soliddd has provided here. In their final form, they should look and feel similar to standard glasses.
There's still a lot of work and testing to do, but the company optimistically believes the glasses will ship sometime in 2025. Solidd is conducting clinical studies, but says it will not ultimately require FDA approval before going to market. .