REDMOND — Microsoft unveiled two experimental AI hardware concepts—a desktop cube and a wearable badge—at its annual developer conference, with executive Steven Bathiche demonstrating their capabilities and CEO Satya Nadella introducing them as part of “Project Solara.” The devices, which remain prototypes, are designed to enable interactions with AI agents outside traditional computing environments.
The desktop device is a small cube with a touch and voice-activated screen intended for use on office desks. The wearable badge, equipped with a small camera, can be worn on a lanyard around the neck or clipped to a belt loop. Both connect to Microsoft software and PCs to support AI-driven tasks, such as assisting with software code writing, as shown in a demonstration video featuring office workers.
During the live demonstration, Bathiche activated the wearable badge using his fingerprint, pointed it at the audience, and instructed it to take pictures and send them for his review—a task it completed autonomously. Bathiche described the badge as “lightweight and designed for agent interactions on the go.” In an online blog post, he stated that the camera allows AI agents “to better understand and help take action on the environment around them.”
Nadella, in pre-recorded remarks, called the devices a “new form factor” for technology and appeared in video footage wearing the badge on a lanyard, similar to a standard office ID card. Microsoft stated that a few hundred employees are currently testing both devices in internal pilots, and that feedback from these trials “will inform how these form factors can be built” in the future. The company has not confirmed that either concept will reach the commercial market.
The announcement comes after Microsoft ended production of its Hololens mixed-reality headset in 2024 following nearly a decade of development and challenges during U.S. Army testing under a multibillion-dollar contract. While the new AI hardware shares Hololens’ ambition to expand computing beyond conventional screens, Microsoft has not disclosed timelines or specific use cases beyond internal testing.
No independent assessment was available for this report.