Smart glasses now let users make seamless UPI payments.

Smart glasses now let users make seamless UPI payments.

India’s popular UPI payment system is managed and operated by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

Smart Glasses Now Let You Make UPI Payments with Just a Look and a Voice Command

Mumbai: Imagine walking into your favorite café, glancing at the QR code on the counter, saying “Pay ₹200,” and completing the transaction instantly — all without touching your phone or typing a PIN. That futuristic scenario is now a reality in India.

(NPCI)** announced on Wednesday.

This marks a new milestone in India’s digital payments journey — bringing the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) into the world of wearable technology.

Payments Without Phones or PINs

According to NPCI, these small-value transactions made through smart glasses won’t require users to carry their mobile phones or enter a payment authentication PIN. Instead, all it takes is a simple glance and a short voice command to authorize a payment.

In other words, India’s payment system is becoming truly hands-free.

The announcement was made at the Global Fintech Fest 2025, currently being held in Mumbai. Rabi Sankar** unveiled the innovation, calling it a “significant leap forward in digital convenience and financial accessibility.”

‘Look. Speak. Pay.’ – The Future of Transactions

The NPCI also released a demonstration video showing just how simple the process can be. The tagline — “Look. Speak. Pay.” — captures the idea perfectly.

In the video, a user wearing smart glasses scans a merchant’s QR code with just a glance. The glasses’ built-in voice assistant confirms the merchant’s name and amount, after which the user simply says a command like “Pay now.” The UPI Lite system instantly processes the payment, and the user receives a confirmation message — all within seconds.

The process doesn’t require a mobile phone, PIN entry, or even tapping on a screen. For small payments such as buying coffee, paying parking fees, or grabbing a quick snack, the convenience is unmatched.

What Makes UPI Lite Different

UPI Lite is a simplified version of India’s UPI payment system that allows small-value transactions to be processed directly from an on-device wallet rather than the user’s bank account. This means faster payments and reduced load on the banking system.

“Embedding UPI Lite on smart glasses enhances convenience for consumers and strengthens India’s leadership in digital payment innovation globally,” NPCI said.

For banks and payment service providers (PSPs), UPI Lite offers additional benefits by reducing the core banking system load through off-CBS (Core Banking System) wallet execution. Essentially, smaller transactions no longer need to ping the bank’s servers every time, freeing up capacity and ensuring smoother operations.

India’s Growing Digital Payment Landscape

India has long been recognized as a global pioneer in digital payments. UPI, launched in 2016, revolutionized how Indians pay for everything from groceries to rent. With nearly a billion transactions happening monthly, UPI has become one of the world’s most successful real-time payment systems.

Now, by introducing payments through wearable devices like smart glasses, NPCI is taking digital payments into the next frontier — where technology quietly blends into daily life.

“This innovation is another step towards making digital transactions as effortless as breathing,” an NPCI official said. “Our goal is to make payments so intuitive and natural that you don’t even think about them — you just do them.”

Making Everyday Life Easier

The new technology could be particularly useful for people on the go — delivery personnel, drivers, or even healthcare workers — who often need to make quick payments without fumbling for their phones. It can also help people with disabilities who may find it difficult to handle smartphones for every transaction.

The smart glasses use voice authentication and UPI Lite’s security protocols, ensuring that the payments remain safe and protected from unauthorized access. NPCI emphasized that user privacy and transaction safety are at the core of this system.

A Step Towards the Future of ‘Ambient Payments’

The concept of ambient payments — where transactions happen naturally in the background of daily activities — has long been considered the future of fintech. From contactless wearables to voice-activated assistants, technology is making payments feel less like a task and more like a seamless part of life.

With this launch, India becomes one of the first countries to extend a national digital payment system to wearable devices. Experts say this could pave the way for similar features in smartwatches, AR glasses, and other connected wearables.

Backed by Strong Institutions

The National Payments Corporation of India, which operates UPI, is an umbrella organization created by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) to build a robust and inclusive payments infrastructure in India.

Over the years, NPCI has introduced innovations like RuPay cards, FASTag, Bharat BillPay, and UPI Lite. Each step has pushed India closer to becoming a truly cashless economy, and this latest innovation reinforces that trajectory.

The Road Ahead

As India’s fintech ecosystem continues to evolve, wearable payment solutions like smart glasses could soon become part of everyday life. With technology growing smarter and payments getting simpler, the line between the physical and digital worlds is steadily disappearing.

For now, though, the message from NPCI is clear — the future of payments is hands-free, fast, and secure. Or as their new slogan puts it: “Look. Speak. Pay.”