Naver Map Brings Walking Navigation to AI Smart Glasses
Naver Map is extending real-time walking directions to Meta smart glasses and plans support for eyewear being developed by Google and Samsung, advancing its push into hands-free local services.
Naver is extending its map service to artificial intelligence-powered smart glasses, allowing users to receive walking directions and search for nearby places without repeatedly looking at a smartphone.
The company said Monday that Naver Map's real-time, step-by-step voice navigation will initially work with Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley Meta glasses. Support is also planned for intelligent eyewear being jointly developed by Google and Samsung Electronics and scheduled for release later this year.
Naver described the feature as the first smart-glasses navigation service offered by a Korean map provider. Users will hear turn-by-turn guidance as they walk, including alerts about whether stairs or escalators are ahead. The service will be introduced first for Android phones, with iPhone compatibility to follow.
The glasses integration also adds voice commands tailored to use while walking. A user can ask when they will arrive at a destination or request directions to a nearby convenience store and receive an immediate response. On the Google-Samsung device, Google's Gemini assistant will be able to open Naver Map and begin navigation through spoken commands.
The launch builds on a real-time walking navigation function that Naver Map introduced in June. That update brought car-navigation-style audio guidance to pedestrian routes, creating the software base for a hands-free version delivered through wearable devices.
Naver plans to connect the glasses with local information already held in its map platform, including restaurant and cafe listings. The company said this could let people move through physical spaces while receiving digital information more naturally.
A further expansion is expected when smart glasses with built-in visual displays reach the market. Naver said those devices could support augmented-reality walking routes and show information about nearby stores or available discount coupons in the user's field of view.
The initiative places Naver Map within a developing hardware ecosystem spanning Meta, Google and Samsung. It also gives the Korean internet company another channel for its local search data, moving the map service beyond phone screens and into wearable computing. For users, the immediate proposition is simpler: directions and nearby-place searches that can be accessed while keeping their eyes on the route ahead.