like pixels stable after Apple’s meticulous implementation plan VisionPro headset, the front line was firmly established in the battle for a new reality. Many tech powers—and several emerging companies—are developing headsets and other gizmos to digitally augment or replace the world perceived by our rudimentary senses . But there’s a glaring difference in philosophy about the role these mixed reality devices should play.
Suddenly, that schism mattered. Just a year ago — in the bad days when we weren’t focused on AI writing our essays and possibly wiping out humanity — technology’s big obsession was the metaverse. Every company seems to have a strategy for this upcoming model. Disappointing sales and the rise of innovative AI pushed that discussion into the platform. But Apple’s flashy entry has revived interest — and challenged the way the once undisputed king of the metaverse, Mark Zuckerberg, is pursuing mixed reality. Other players in the field will choose between these paths. Even giants like Microsoft. When I said recently with its CEO, Satya Nadella, he reaffirmed his commitment to the pursuit of “presence”. (Then we continue talking about AI.)
Nine years ago, Zuckerberg’s exposure to VR through an Oculus headset—when it was a mere Kickstarter concoction—was like a bolt of lightning hitting his skull. Immediately, he was convinced that digitally created reality was the foundation of the future. Predictably, the founder of the world’s dominant social media company predicted that this new technology would be social. In 2014, he buy startup for $2 billion. Although progress was slow—his original ten-year term was almost up—he never lost faith, even changing the company name to Meta to show his commitment. Embracing the term “metaverse,” the name novelist Neal Stephenson gave to the concept of an alternative digital world, Zuckerberg has a long-term goal of providing the tools to take us somewhere else. — and socialize there.
Long term, really. Meta’s headsets, dubbed Quest, are by far the most popular VR device, but they’re far from ubiquitous. Zuckerberg’s path to change is paved with immersive activities like gaming, fitness, and VR social spaces where people are represented by animated avatars. As silly as this is, I’ve discovered that these avatars can actually promote a semi-lively sense of connection. But Meta’s flagship social app, Horizon Worlds, is still clunky and tiresome. Last year, a Meta executive had to scold an employee for not using it for their meetings. However, the company is spending billions of dollars on research to improve the technology, believing its approach is the right one.
With the $3,500 Vision Pro headset—lighter and more sophisticated than Meta’s Quest devices—Apple has chosen a different direction. EQUAL I wrote earlier this month in my first impressions of the device, the company considers its operating system, VisionOs, to follow the tradition of earlier advances in native computer interfaces, such as graphical interfaces and pointing devices as mouse or touch screen. James Wagner Au, new book author Create an Important Metaversesays, “It makes more sense to see the Vision Pro as the successor to the Mac Pro—a device for premium content creators who would find it tempting to have a single device that can bundle multiple screens into one device or reality.”
Not once during Apple’s event was the word “metaverse” uttered. Instead, the company’s wordsmiths say the device is a foray into “spatial computing.” The Vision Pro is essentially a single device that allows you to work or watch movies. The most social component is that when a person approaches you in the real world, the digital screen consuming your consciousness is dim enough to let you know someone is approaching, perhaps to ask you for a stapler.
