Loading summary
TikTok Advertiser 1
Want to keep up with everything trendy. From breaking news to shareable jokes, pop culture bites to viral food spots, it's all on TikTok. Download TikTok now to explore.
TikTok Advertiser 2
Wallet feeling light after the holidays, Recovery starts with TikTok slash and free Pick products, share the link and watch the price drop to zero. Download TikTok search free and start slashing.
Jamie
Today, South Korea's letin AR is building the optics behind AI glasses. So today we're going to talk about this company Letin ar and they're actually behind some of the technology that goes into the metaglasses which are becoming, they're kind of blowing up right now. Everyone is using them and it's a technology that actually has some use cases behind it, some AI technology. So today we're going to talk about Latin AR and how they have been able to blow up as a company because of this and how sometimes some of these smaller companies in the background are actually the ones who are are making growing the most in in their technologies is what is driving a lot of these products and services. So before we get into that, Jaden, why don't you tell them about our school community?
Jaden
Yeah. Every single week Jamie and I break down a strategy, a tool, a tip, something that we're doing in our actual business to use AI to grow and scale. This week we did a whole episode talking about the strategy and the behind the scenes On a viral post I did on LinkedIn it got a hundred thousand impressions, a viral comment I did on LinkedIn that got almost 80,000 impressions and how all of that spilled over to Reddit to get 1300 upvotes on a Reddit post and then the, the traffic that my website saw from all of this. So if you're interested in that whole behind the scenes story, I'm sharing my screen, I'm walking through all the metrics, my Google search console, like everything, go check it out. It's, it's on the AI Hustle school community. Along with we also break down and I share how I used AI to do a lot of the, a lot of this help with a lot of this because I had to respond to 150 comments. But if you are interested in learning how to grow and scale your business, whether that's marketing like, like today's or if you're looking at vibe coding, this is something we both two of these things we do a ton of on the school community. It's 19amonth and we share tons of exclusive info, strategies, secrets and also the metrics like how much money we actually make from different things. So this should hopefully give you a good idea and inspire you on your journey, whether you're a side hustler or whether you're growing and scaling your business or career with AI tools. So go check it out. It's the AI hustle school community linked in the description it's only $19 a month. So we try to make this affordable for everyone and we would love to have you as a member. Okay, let's talk about what's going on in South Korea. So let an ar. The thing that the reason why I was really excited about this story is because I think so often we talk about, you know, anthropics getting close to a trillion dollars and like all of these companies that are just making like you know, gob smacking amounts of money and they're kind of the main AI model providers. They're the main companies, they're the, the, the Nvidias. I recently saw a post on LinkedIn about a 24 year old hedge fund manager that he turned $750,000 into like 5 billion and then he turned that into like 12 billion. And I think he's getting close to turning that into like $20 billion. And he basically has been betting against. Well right now he, he's basically betting that the people that are going to win in all of this AI race right now are not just OpenAI and anthropic, they're actually a lot of the infrastructure that supplies that. So I think he probably bet early on Nvidia when that was like less of an obvious bet. Now Nvidia's got this massive, you know, multi trillion dollar valuation. And so I think actually right now I saw that he's shorting Nvidia which it could just be hedging his bets, but apparently he's shorting Nvidia and instead he's investing heavily into land data centers and power companies. So like the infrastructural backbone. Anyways, I saw this post, I was, I was breaking down what his, his strategy, what his investment strategy was. I was so fascinated. And so when I saw this story about, about letting ar, I was like, oh my gosh, it's one of those companies that isn't the forerunner on a trend, but it's, it's kind of one of the components that is supplying and it's making just a killing. So we kind of want to go into what's going on with let in ar. But yeah, I guess like Jamie, what were your thoughts on this company?
Jamie
Yeah, well, I, at first I was reading about, you know, the meta ray bans and things, but it looks like this company actually they're one of the forefront people who are making the optic module for some of these more intense, intense AI glasses that actually have a projection overlay of your surroundings. So it looks like this is quite proprietary and something very difficult to pull off. No one has really been able to yet. But this company is backed by lg, so definitely in the tech space and hardware space. But yeah, so apparently it, the, they sell the optic module that projects images of your field of vision. So and then, so, you know, part of the issue here is we've seen all those, the pictures of like Mark Zuckerberg with these massive like silly looking goggles on that have this, that supposedly project, you know, things over your reality and it kind of, it doesn't really look that appealing to be honest. But this company here is, is trying to make that small and make it actually something that you would actually want to wear to work. So I think this is pretty exciting technology actually and I would love to see the finished product and see exactly, you know, what it looks like. So yeah. Have you, have you read at all Jaden about like how this actually works? Does it?
Jaden
Yes, it's really fascinating. There's some interesting things. Well, one thing I want to bring up though is like they just raised $18.5 million from Korean development bank Lottie Ventures. So they've raised over $40 million at this point and they're doing, they have an IPO planned for next year. So and it's, but it's going to be in, in Seoul. So I mean it's a Korean company so they're going to be IPOing. And so, so of course these numbers are, I'm sure a lot of people are like anthropic's worth a trillion dollars. This is nothing. Okay, well for non American companies this is amazing. They're crushing it. And honestly, I mean even for American companies this is an amazing, this is amazing bet. I'm excited to see what happens here. But it is interesting, you know, when you've raised 41 million and you have an IPO planned. Whereas like, I don't know, Anthropic probably pays their top researcher 41 million a year. I don't know. Right. But it's interesting what they're doing though. Uh, you're mentioning how, you're mentioning their technology. So they have something called pin tilt and basically what it does, there's two ways to do AR and VR. One which is what we're all more familiar with is something like an Oculus headset or, or meta, I guess we just call a Meta headset or something, I don't know. And that is that the lights and the projection is projecting onto the screen in front of you. Or if it's glasses, the glasses like the glass. It's projecting onto the glass. So that's how a lot of this is working. But there's a new strategy, which sounds terrifying, but I've actually seen this played out. And I think Meta is working on some things here where there's actually a light in there that directs straight onto your retina. So there's two ways to do it. You can direct the light onto the glass that you're looking at, or you can direct the light straight onto your retina. And that's what they have cracked with their, with their pen tilt technology, is that they're able to shoot the light straight on your retina very hard. You can imagine like, I don't know, shining lasers on your eye. Doesn't sound good in any way, shape or form. So they've, they've done this well and they're working with a bunch of really interesting people in the space because of it. One thing I wanted to bring up, though, is just like the overarching industry trends. Global AI glasses shipments hit 8.7 million units last year. That's 300% more than the year before. This year is going to be crazy. I mean, Apple's working on this. The Ray Bans are selling out like hotcakes. We have so many different people trying to get in on this. So, I mean, Snapchat is trying to. I don't know, the Snap spectacles, they're. They're trying to make them come back. I don't know if they ever really took off, but I feel like they missed the boat. Poor Snapchat. But anyways, let an ar. Doesn't matter who, whether it's Meta or Google, because, yeah, Google, Meta and Apple are all working on this. But between those three big players, they're helping supply a lot of the components. And this company is just going to crush it because of that. They also have a bunch of. They have a bunch of interesting customers. One of them is out of Switzerland. It's called Aegis Rider, and it's actually a motorcycle helmet. So inside the motorcycle helmet, the visor on the motorcycle helmet. And actually that's a great use case because, you know, it's more like the Oculus glasses or like, like the whole headset or like the Apple, you know, the Apple headset as well. Like, they look ridiculous, but I guess if they were, they look like ski goggles is what everyone calls the, the Apple one. But I'm like, well, if it was built into actual ski goggles, I'm sure it'd be pretty cool. And I think it's the same thing with the helmet. If it's built into an actual motorcycle helmet, it's pretty cool. So, yeah, I think between the two of those, they have a lot of exciting stuff going. But this company plus many others, I think is where you want to look at, like, what are the companies that are making the components going into the major AI trends coming out right now. And a lot of those companies are good bets to, to watch grow as you see a lot of these trends take off.
Jamie
Yeah, I think, I mean, I think this is a really interesting problem that they're solving because, you know, all those big ridiculous headsets you described, part of the function is to block out the sunlight and the, the ambient light, which is going to overpower the screen itself. And the other part is, I would assume, battery, because you're. You're basically having a screen that projects, you know, so you have two different issues here. This, this pin tilt technology, they explained it kind of like traditional. Those traditional ones are working like a TV where you have this light coming from the tv, but a lot of it escapes into the room. The point they're trying to make is only the light that hits your eye is what really matters. So if they can direct it to your eye, then they can not only. They don't have to worry as much about blocking out all the other lights around. So you're not going to have that form factor issue, but it's also going to save on battery power because there's not that wasted light going anywhere else. So I would. I would love to try these again. Like you said. I don't know how I would feel about lasers being shined into my eye all the time, but I think, I think it could be a really cool thing. I'm excited to see there, see what happens with this company.
Liberty Mutual Spokesperson 1
And Doug, there's nowhere I wouldn't go to help someone customize and save on car insurance with Liberty Mutual, even if it means sitting front row at a comedy show.
Liberty Mutual Spokesperson 2
Hey, everyone, check out this guy and his bird. What is this, your first date?
Liberty Mutual Spokesperson 1
Oh, no. We help people customize and save on car insurance with Liberty Mutual together. We're married. Me to a human, him to a bird.
Liberty Mutual Spokesperson 2
Yeah, the bird looks out of your league anyways.
Liberty Mutual Spokesperson 1
Get a quote@liberty mutual.com or with your local agent.
Liberty Mutual Spokesperson 2
Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty.
TikTok Advertiser 3
Wait. You don't need an hour to burn calories. TikTok has short workouts that get your heart rate up fast. Download now and get moving.
In this episode, Jaeden and Jamie dive deep into LetinAR, a South Korean company revolutionizing the AI glasses space through its advanced optical modules. The discussion centers on LetinAR’s recent $18.5M investment round, how deftly their pin-tilt technology positions them as a critical infrastructure provider in the booming AR hardware market, and larger investment trends in the AI ecosystem. The hosts highlight how companies powering foundational components—not just the big AI model providers—are primed for outsized growth and impact.
[00:28 - 04:31]
Background & Significance:
Jamie introduces LetinAR as a ‘behind-the-scenes’ force, quietly powering the technology behind wildly popular metaglasses and AR hardware. Unlike marquee AI brands, LetinAR provides mission-critical components, driving real-world adoption of AI-enabled eyewear.
“Sometimes some of these smaller companies in the background are actually the ones who are making, growing the most in their technologies—it’s what is driving a lot of these products and services.”
— Jamie [00:39]
[01:50 - 05:57]
Investment Angle:
Jaeden recounts the story of a young hedge fund manager who amassed a fortune by betting not on the AI giants, but on the infrastructure—the ‘picks and shovels’—supporting them, like Nvidia, land, data centers, and now companies like LetinAR.
“The people that are going to win in all of this AI race right now are not just OpenAI and Anthropic. They’re actually a lot of the infrastructure that supplies that.”
— Jaeden [02:50]
LetinAR as a Prime Example:
The hosts underscore LetinAR as one of these key component suppliers, poised for explosive growth as AI glasses hit mainstream adoption.
[04:31 - 10:54]
What Sets LetinAR Apart:
Jamie explains that LetinAR specializes in compact, proprietary optic modules designed for real-world, comfortable, fashionable use—not just clunky headsets.
Backed by LG, strong positioning in the hardware space.
Provides a real projection overlay of surroundings, hard to achieve, major differentiator.
“They sell the optic module that projects images over your field of vision...this is quite proprietary and something very difficult to pull off. No one has really been able to yet.”
— Jamie [04:39]
Technical Deep Dive:
Jaeden details LetinAR’s unique approach:
Traditional AR/VR projects onto a glass or screen in front of you.
LetinAR’s “pin-tilt” fires microscopic beams directly onto the wearer’s retina, reducing the size and power needs dramatically while cutting ambient light issues.
“They have something called pin tilt...There’s actually a light in there that directs straight onto your retina...that’s what they have cracked with their pin tilt technology. They’re able to shoot the light straight on your retina—very hard. You can imagine, like, I don’t know, shining lasers on your eye. Doesn’t sound good in any way, shape, or form. So they’ve done this well...”
— Jaeden [06:36]
Form Factor and Power Innovations:
Jamie notes that this solves major usability issues and battery drain, making AI glasses more practical and desirable.
“The point they’re trying to make is: only the light that hits your eye is what really matters. So if they can direct it to your eye, then...it’s also going to save on battery power because there’s not that wasted light going anywhere else.”
— Jamie [10:00]
Market Momentum:
LetinAR has raised $41M total, IPO in Seoul planned for next year.
Global AI glasses shipments grew 300% YoY to 8.7 million units.
LetinAR supplies multiple major brands—including a notable partnership with Swiss company Aegis Rider for AR-enabled motorcycle helmet visors.
“LetinAR...doesn’t matter who, whether it’s Meta or Google, because, yeah, Google, Meta, and Apple are all working on this. But between those three big players, they’re helping supply a lot of the components. And this company is just going to crush it because of that.”
— Jaeden [08:20]
“If you’re interested in learning how to grow and scale your business, whether that’s marketing like today’s or if you’re looking at vibe coding—this is something we both do a ton of on the school community...We try to make this affordable for everyone and would love to have you as a member.”
— Jaeden [01:33]
“All those big, ridiculous headsets you described, part of the function is to block out the sunlight and the ambient light, which is going to overpower the screen itself. And the other part is, I would assume, battery...This pin tilt technology—they explained it kind of like traditional...Those are working like a TV, but a lot of it escapes into the room. The point they’re trying to make is: only the light that hits your eye is what really matters.”
— Jamie [09:40]
“I would love to try these. Again, like you said, I don’t know how I would feel about lasers being shined into my eye all the time, but I think it could be a really cool thing. I’m excited to see what happens with this company.”
— Jamie [10:41]
This engaging episode of AI Hustle spotlights LetinAR as a prime case of an “infrastructure” company quietly propelling the AI hardware revolution forward—with industry-disrupting optics tech that might soon be at the heart of AR devices from Meta, Apple, Google, and more. The discussion balances technical depth (explaining retinal projection and its implications for comfort, form, power), strategic investment thinking, and practical insight for listeners hustling in AI. For entrepreneurs, investors, and enthusiasts, it’s a reminder: sometimes the most lucrative opportunities are in the picks and shovels—those enabling the gold rush, not just leading it.