Belgian eyewear start-up Morrow Eyewear has partnered with 3D printing specialist Materialise to develop autofocal glasses that electronically switch between near and distance vision at the touch of a button. The central challenge for the company was not only technological but aesthetic — integrating tunable liquid-crystal lenses and concealed electronics into a frame that wearers would actually want to put on. “Success with smart glasses is not straightforward,” said Paul Marchal, CEO and co-founder of Morrow Eyewear. “People have to want to wear them. That means marrying aesthetic appeal with optical capability. We could meet this challenge by capitalizing on the design flexibility and physical performance offered by 3D printing.”
Working with Materialise allowed Morrow to prototype rapidly and move toward scalable, on-demand manufacturing. Precision was non-negotiable. “The bevel size and internal dimensions must be exact, or the assembly won’t function,” Marchal said. “Materialise has turned color consistency and strength control into a science, which has been essential to our success.” The on-demand production model has also helped the company minimize inventory and reduce material waste. “We don’t want to maintain a large stock,” Marchal noted. “Shorter lead times let us keep learning what people want while minimizing waste and working capital. You don’t throw away half your stock at the end of a season.”
Founded in 2016 by Marchal and Jelle De Smet, Morrow emerged from research at imec and Ghent University. The company has attracted more than 10 million euros in investment from ZEISS Ventures and others, and in early 2024 entered a distribution agreement with Novacel Optical to bring its eProgressive autofocal technology to markets in France and Switzerland. The company has since grown its frame offering to more than 160 variations through a collaboration with Belgian eyewear designer Bieke Hoet. Gerrit Schulte, Head of ZEISS Ventures, noted that “the general electrification and functionalization of glasses and lenses is an area often overlooked. Solutions such as Morrow’s are key in enabling this.”
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