Apple Smart Glasses and Vision Pro Boss Leaving for OpenAI

Apple Smart Glasses and Vision Pro Boss Leaving for OpenAI

Apple’s executive leading the tech giant’s smart glasses project is reportedly leaving for OpenAI.

Paul Meade is the latest in a string of high-level departures from Apple to its AI/Big Tech competitors, according to a report Friday (June 26) by Bloomberg News.

Meade is due to leave Apple by this week and will then begin work at OpenAI’s hardware unit on the company’s planned suite of artificial intelligence-powered devices, sources with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg.

The report characterizes his departure as a blow to Apple, with Meade having overseen engineering on the Vision Pro headset for seven years. He has also been responsible for developing the display-free smart glasses aimed at moving Apple into the AI wearables space to compete with Meta, Bloomberg added.

At OpenAI, Meade will work with one-time colleagues Jony Ive, Tang Tan and Evans Hankey, all of whom had lead design, hardware product design and industrial design at Apple before launching an AI hardware startup that OpenAI acquired in 2025.

Last year saw several Apple executives move to Meta and OpenAI, along with dozens of employees further down the company ladder.

The news comes weeks after a report that Apple had abandoned plans for a successor to its Vision Pro mixed reality headset and will concentrate instead on smart glasses. A report by Seeking Alpha, citing TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, said Apple has two different versions of the glasses planned, with the hope of shipping a display-less iteration of the product in 2027.

A display-equipped pair of smart glasses is expected to arrive in 2029, incorporating augmented reality and mixed reality, per the report.

Meanwhile, Meta and EssilorLuxottica introduced a new collection of AI glasses called Meta Glasses last week. Starting at $299, they are designed to be accessible to a broader audience than the glasses already sold by the companies.

“While our iconic brands continue to be a leading driver of adoption in the market, we see an opportunity to drive access to broader audiences through this company-branded collection,” EssilorLuxottica Chairman and CEO Francesco Milleri said in a news release.

“More price-sensitive consumers will have an opportunity to experience the power that wearables bring into their everyday lives.”

Writing about the smart glasses space earlier this year, PYMNTS argued that the presence of AI in these devices “does not eliminate the need for a clear use case,” as the technology enhances interactions while not defining them.

“The question of why a user should wear AR glasses for hours each day, rather than pull out a smartphone when needed, remains open,” that report said.