A startup company claims that it has built the world’s first true set of smart contact lenses with an embedded display that allows the wearer to see the world in augmented reality. The creators claim that they have built these lenses with a display of 14,000 pixels per inch. This means that the AR experience is closer to the wearer’s eyeball than ever before and it could eliminate smart glasses. The contact lenses are more lightweight and portable than a headset.
The company behind this model is called Mojo Vision and the Mojo Lens came to life after years and years of strenuous research, development, patented filings. It is not a shipping product yet but the company is currently demonstrating a prototype. Drew Perkins, CEO of Mojo Vision, stated that they are excited to reveal the product of their hard work over the past decade and that they can’t wait to reveal it to the public. Perkins further said that Mojo has a vision for invisible computing where you have the information you need at your fingertips without being distracted by unnecessary data. He mentioned that the AR data will fade away as easily as it appeared if the user wants to return to the real world.
The technology at play here is very advanced and it is an achievement for the company to have created a functioning, built-in display contact lens. However, this is not the only aspect Mojo Vision is proud of. Its pixel display puts it far above the Oculus Rift S, which is the best VR headset on the market at the moment. Apart from this, the company also managed to equip a custom wireless radio and motion sensors for eye-tracking and image stabilization.
Even though there are many entertainment and business advantages to these smart contact lenses, the company hopes that it could assist children and adults with blindness or impaired vision. The company has already entered a partnership with the Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired and they hope that the use of enhanced overlays, lighting adjustment, and zoom-in functions could be of assistance to its users.
A great product is not without challenges and there are quite a few for the Mojo Lens. One of them is dealing with the US Food and Drug Administration. Besides, sources claim that the working prototype is hooked onto a battery and external processor. Mojo Vision is currently aiming at all-day battery life where the contact lenses would charge through an induction system and be disabled at night. It is also not clear how much the product will retail for. Over $100 million in investments have been made into the company and it is led by a team with notable experience under their belts including Apple, Amazon, Google, HP, and Microsoft. These hurdles are not easy to climb over and if Mojo Vision can do it, they might just release the product of the decade onto the market.
