Technology company Meta has opened a £12 million audio research lab in Cambridge.

This comes as part of the company’s efforts to expand its AI glasses, which it has created alongside luxury sunglasses brand Ray-Ban. Meta was reported on Wednesday (09/07) to have purchased a nearly 3% stake EssilorLuxottica, the company which produces Ray-Bans, worth approximately £2.6 billion.

Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, explained: “Using advanced machine learning, Meta’s teams are training glasses to detect user focus and enhance the sounds you want to hear while reducing background noise.”

The glasses produced by Meta and Ray-Ban currently sell for between £299 and £379, depending on the model. They offer services such as video calling, livestreaming, and providing outfit inspiration.

Meta says that the new facility strengthens the UK’s “position as a global hub for technological innovation,” and “reinforces Meta’s long-term presence in the region and supports the UK’s ambition to lead in AI and immersive computing development”. The company added that it intends to use the lab to ensure that its sound-enhanced AI experiences are “natural, immersive, and inclusive”.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves met with Meta’s chief global affairs officer, Joel Kaplan, at the Cambridge facility.

Kaplan said: “Creating this world-class audio lab in Cambridge is a sign of our long-term commitment to the UK and our belief in the top engineering talent it produces,” adding: “We want the brightest minds to make sure our smart glasses have the smartest AI-powered audio so you can focus on what you’re listening to no matter what’s going on around you.”

Reeves stated: “Meta’s investment is a huge vote of confidence in the UK as a hub for world-leading research and innovation while helping to supercharge the potential in the Oxford to Cambridge growth corridor.”

The “growth corridor” is a proposal to better connect the cities of Oxford and Cambridge, which the government says could add £78 billion to the UK industry.

The Chancellor continued: “We want our high-tech industries to continue to lead the world in years to come which is why we’re backing our innovators, researchers and entrepreneurs with a record £22 billion in R&D (research and development) funding, creating the opportunity for good jobs and investment in Britain, and delivering on our plan for change.”

As of the end of 2023, Meta employed 6,338 staff members in the UK.