About Us

Choose Your Reality

Our Roots

In 2018, Cayden built his first smart glasses in his university dorm. Meanwhile, Israelov was independently experimenting with smart glasses technology. They connected on Reddit in 2022, teamed up to form TeamOpenSmartGlasses – the earliest community of smart glasses hackers – and within a year presented OpenSourceSmartGlasses at CES 2023.

That experience led to a greater realization:

Just as cell phones, smart glasses need their own operating system.
That idea became MentraOS.

In 2024, Cayden dropped out of MIT and Israelov quit his job to found Mentra. They launched MentraOS, went through YC, and raised $8M.

Today, the team is made up of diverse individuals who have experience working with Google, Fitbit, Calvin Klein, and Nike, yet will always retain that hacker spirit.

Cayden Pierce and Alex Israelov at CES 2023

Our Mission

For years, the world was promised smart glasses, but the technology wasn't ready. In 2024, AI and hardware finally reached that moment. Software did not. So we built MentraOS.

Smart glasses are not a trend. They are inevitable. Today, we pull out our phones hundreds of times a day just to connect our eyes, ears, and senses to the digital world. Smart glasses make that connection seamless and natural.

AI becomes powerful only when it understands context. With smart glasses, AI can see what you see, hear what you hear, and understand your environment in real time, unlocking the next generation of truly helpful computing.

We vow to protect people from a future where their technology and experiences are controlled by big tech companies.

With MentraOS and Mentra Live, we ensure a future where people will always get to choose their reality.