Chinese AI glasses sales surge on strong demand

Chinese AI glasses reported a sales boost during the Spring Festival, driven by consumer demand and a new government subsidy.

In Shenzhen’s Huaqiangbei electronics market, total revenue rose 35% year-on-year, led by strong demand for AI glasses, whose sales surged 80%.

Sales of drones and robots also increased by about 50% in the same market.

The government subsidy, introduced in January, covers AI glasses among four categories, offering a 15% discount capped at 500 yuan (US$69) for products under 6,000 yuan (about US$870).

Reports from Henan show educators and business professionals are main users, while interest in teleprompter features comes from Zhejiang province.

Some customers still see AI glasses as a novelty, citing weight and battery life issues.

The Chinese AI eyewear market grew rapidly, with Alibaba, Huawei, Xiaomi, and Baidu leading; shipments hit 623,000 units in Q3 2025, up 62.3% year-on-year.

IDC forecasts shipments will reach 4.5 million units in 2026, with AI features in over a third of products sold in China.

🔗 Source: South China Morning Post

🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

Subsidies put AI glasses on China’s upgrade list

China added AI glasses to its national pro-consumption trade-in subsidy program for the first time, aiming to grow demand and spur product upgrades 1.
Some home appliance categories will lose support next year, including microwave ovens and dishwashers 1.
Other appliances now qualify only at the top energy-efficiency tier. The subsidy rate drops to 15% from 20% 1.
The broader plan gets funding up front. It includes 62.5 billion yuan (US$8.9 billion) from ultra-long special treasury bonds for 2026 consumer goods trade-in subsidies 1.
This narrower help can cut the upfront cost for a fast-growing segment, moving AI glasses beyond early adopters toward wider use 1.

Domestic demand gives Chinese brands room to push Meta

Meta holds 75.7% of the global smart glasses market, while four of the top five manufacturers are Chinese firms 2.
Subsidized sales at home help Chinese makers ramp output faster, using China’s large base for components and final assembly 3.
Funding is following the buildout. Thunderbird Innovation raised over 1 billion yuan, while XREAL disclosed about US$100 million to get ready for industrial mass production 3.
China is turning its home market into a launchpad for manufacturing scale, which could challenge US leadership in what many call the next major computing platform 4.