MILAN, Sept 26 (Reuters) - A prospective investment by

Meta Platforms ( META ) in eyeglasses maker EssilorLuxottica

will be a "symbolic" gesture to cement their long-term

partnership, CEO Mark Zuckerberg told technology news website

The Verge.

"I think we've talked about investing in them. It's not

going to be a major thing. I'd say it's more of a symbolic

thing. We want to have this be a long-term partnership, and as

part of that, I thought that this would be a nice gesture,"

Zuckerberg said in a video interview published late on Wednesday

on The Verge.

"I fundamentally believe in them a lot. I think that they're

going to go from being the premier glasses company in the world

to one of the major technology companies in the world," he

added.

Earlier this month, EssilorLuxottica said it had extended

its partnership with Meta for developing smart eyewear.

In July, EssilorLuxottica confirmed that the tech giant

might invest in the company, after the Wall Street Journal

reported that the two companies had discussed Meta taking a 5%

stake in the French-Italian group.

Facebook owner Meta showed off its first working prototype

of augmented-reality glasses, called Orion, during its annual

Connect conference on Wednesday.