In a year or two, Apple will take wraps off a new kind of product that ought to replace its biggest creation – the iPhone. If you follow the technology field news, you should be aware of smart glasses the Cupertino-based company has been working on for the few last years. And though it’s considered to be a top-secret project, we have been periodically getting some leaks about the upcoming Apple AR glasses. Moreover, another product from this category – the Apple VR headset – has been in the works as well. So in the near future, Apple, Meta, and other tech hegemonies will launch “the next version of the world”. Are you ready? Recently, Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed that the company is working on the Apple AR.
In this @ChinaDailyUSA interview, @tim_cook was asked about AR and VR headsets…watch his response… Reality 🥽 is coming@mingchikuo @Scobleizer @CharlieFink @SkarredGhost @CapStark7 pic.twitter.com/tJz5j9dBVB
— Cæsar (@cesarberardini) June 22, 2022
Cook was asked in an interview what he thinks is the key to the success of augmented reality (AR) in the consumer market. “I am incredibly excited about AR as you might know. And the critical thing to any technology, including AR, is putting humanity at the center of it.”
He then described Apple’s current work in this area, which focuses on AR applications on the iPhone and iPad, but then added: “But I think we’re still in the very early innings of how this technology will evolve. I couldn’t be more excited about the opportunities we’ve seen in this space, and sort of stay tuned and you’ll see what we have to offer.”
It’s one of the clearest examples of Cook admitting that Apple is embarking on bigger plans in AR. While current AR apps are useful for things like mapping a room or seeing if a new piece of furniture will fit, it’s more likely that Apple has been building codebases for developers to develop apps for devices like headsets (library) and tools.
Apple has recently shown the AR/VR headset to the board. At that time, we learned that the company plans to release it as early as the end of this year. But it may also be delayed until next year before starting sales in 2023.
In the headset space, Apple needs to catch up with several other big tech companies, especially Meta. Last year, Facebook changed its name to Meta to focus on the metaverse. Separately, Microsoft first launched the Hololens MR glasses in 2016.
