Mentra Secures $8 Million to Propel "Android for Smart Glasses" Vision with MentraOS 2.0 Launch

San Francisco-based startup Mentra has successfully raised $8 million in a seed funding round and simultaneously unveiled MentraOS 2.0, an open-source operating system designed to become the foundational software for smart glasses. The significant investment underscores growing confidence in the burgeoning smart glasses market, with Mentra aiming to establish a universal platform akin to Android for mobile devices.

The funding round attracted a notable roster of investors, including Hartmann Capital, Android co-founder Rich Miner, YouTube co-founder Jawed Karim, Toyota Ventures, and Amazon Alexa Fund. "Mentra has just raised $8 million to launch MentraOS 2.0 — an open-source operating system designed specifically for smart glasses," stated a social media post by WebARくまさん, highlighting the prominent backers. Mentra's participation in the Y Combinator Winter 2025 batch further signals its potential in the tech landscape.

MentraOS 2.0, previously known as AugmentOS, offers an open SDK (Software Development Kit) that enables developers to create applications compatible across various smart glass devices. Mentra CEO Cayden Pierce articulates the company's ambitious goal, stating, "We’re not building hype demos. We’re building the infrastructure for the next personal computer," positioning Mentra as a critical player in the next generation of wearable computing. This open-source approach contrasts with the more vertically integrated strategies of larger tech companies.

The launch comes as the smart glasses market is poised for significant expansion, with many new devices introduced at events like CES. Mentra's strategy focuses on providing a unified software layer for these diverse hardware offerings, supporting features such as live captions, translation, notifications, and AI assistants. The company is also launching its own modular smart glasses kit, Mentra Live, for developers and enterprise users, with display-enabled glasses expected in early 2026.