Report details the development of Apple's MR headset as sources say Jony Ive remains involved as an external consultant and the device is not focused on gaming
Context & Ripple Effects
Apple's headset program had already been shaped by delays and internal resistance to an early VR concept, making product definition as important as launch timing. The report adds that Apple still has Jony Ive's outside input while steering the project away from a gaming-led identity.
Later coverage describes a 3D iOS-like interface with AR and VR modes and a shift from eyeglasses toward a ski-goggle form factor, placing this early positioning decision in the arc of a more general-purpose computing device.
First-order effects
- Apple's headset team is immediately accountable for a use case broader than games, while Jony Ive retains influence over the product as an external consultant.
- A gaming-first pitch loses priority for the initial device, concentrating Apple's early product narrative on mixed-reality interaction and computing experiences.
Second-order effects
- Developers and content partners seeking to reach Apple’s headset audience face a product positioned around a broader interface rather than a console-style software proposition.
- The later emphasis on AR and VR modes and a Mac external-display feature makes platform and productivity integrations more central to Apple's ecosystem pitch than game catalog depth alone.
Third-order effects
- If Apple sustains this direction, mixed-reality competition will increasingly turn on whether headsets function as personal-computing interfaces rather than on gaming specialization alone.
- Apple's progression from an early VR concept to a ski-goggle-like device suggests that industrial design and interface choices will determine which headset use cases can reach the market first.
The trend: Apple's headset effort reflects a broader shift in mixed reality from gaming-led VR products toward general-purpose spatial computing interfaces.
Related: Apple · Jony · Headset development challenges and early VR pushback · Apple headset interface and tracking details · Apple headset vision and form-factor shift
Related Coverage
- Behind the Apple Design Decisions That Bogged Down Its Mixed-Reality Headset The Information
- Apple's Mixed Reality Headset Reportedly Has 14 Cameras For Lifelike Metaverse Avatars HotHardware.com News
- Making sense of the latest rumors about Apple's looming AR and Mixed Reality headsets 9to5Mac
- Apple had to make tough choices about final design of AR/VR headset The Economic Times
- Apple's AR/VR mixed reality headset will likely be a standalone device Pocket-lint
- Apple reportedly chose a standalone AR / VR headset over a more powerful tethered design The Verge
- Apple's AR/VR headset sounds mental! getrevue.co
- Apple's Headset, a Fashion Fiasco in the Making? The Information
- Futuristic Qualcomm AR glasses go wireless for the first time BGR
- Former Apple Design Chief Jony Ive Is Still Involved With the AR Headset Project, but in an External Capacity Wccftech
- Apple's VR/AR headset report just revealed a major weakness Tom's Guide
- Apple's Headset Said To Feature 14 Cameras Enabling Lifelike Avatars Slashdot
- Apple Mixed Reality Headset Won't Focus on Gaming; Jony Ive Remains Involved in Development: Report iPhone Hacks
- Wayne Ma: Why Apple's prototype headset has 14 cameras Philip Elmer‑DeWitt
- Jony Ive-Designed Apple Headset to Reportedly Feature 14 Cameras iPhone in Canada Blog
- Report Details The Troubled Development Delaying Apple's AR/VR Headset UploadVR
- Jony Ive is reportedly still involved with Apple's AR/VR headset project MobileSyrup
- Apple AR/VR headset primed to revolutionize virtual reality BGR
- Apple is reportedly jamming 14 cameras into its mixed reality headset Input
Discussion
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@cixliv
@cixliv
on x
XR companies are used to a hard investor market. XR will have its second big hype train since the Oculus acquisition in 2023. I'm calling it now. Investors sleeping on the space, will miss out if they don't take it serious now.
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@cixliv
@cixliv
on x
@HoloBeard This market will be completely blitzed by a Apple headset release. And all the other companies will have to quickly release their response.
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@dennycloudhead
@dennycloudhead
on x
If the “finger clip” has great haptics, it could cover some edge cases but...Hand tracking, even “great” hand tracking, remains a weirdly disconnected sensation. Good for utilitarian. Again, looking down your nose at “gaming” in the XR space seems like a HUGE blunder Apple. https…
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@sadlyitsbradley
Brad Lynch
on x
“Apple isn't developing game controllers for the device and is aiming to use hand tracking or in combination with a clothespin-like finger clip as inputs for the device, multiple people familiar with the project say.” Oh boy.
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@scobleizer
Robert Scoble
on x
@SadlyItsBradley Everyone forgets the iPhone. It'll be a pretty amazing controller for many uses. Now, a Call of Duty user will want better. Will have to wait to see if Apple does something for them, but it doesn't sound like it. Either way, Apple has a lot of patents on gloves e…
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@darth
@darth
on x
i sincerely hope apple releases two models of this headset one with and one without the added expense of the outward facing screen i just do not need that other screen i can not even see it when i am using this headset tim apple why do i have to pay more for it
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@sadlyitsbradley
Brad Lynch
on x
“Prior to 2019, [Apple's VR project group] had a freewheeling culture, operating almost like a startup within Apple” “Employees brainstormed features and experimented with ideas that might never see the light of day.” Sounds similar to another certain company I report on 🤣
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@scobleizer
Robert Scoble
on x
And, yes, if you really care about privacy this will be a tough pill to swallow. That said, once you see just how much better screens are inside this than in the real world many of you will give up these fears.
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@neilcybart
Neil Cybart
on x
Mixed reality will introduce the idea of sharing real-world experiences with others via a digital space. Examples include “attending” everything from live sports events and awards shows to theatrical plays from the comfort of one's home.
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@neilcybart
Neil Cybart
on x
There have been plenty of signs and clues pointing to Apple moving into mixed reality (sooner rather than later too). Everything from FaceTime SharePlay and Live Text in Photos to M&A and Apple continuing to go hard on Memoji. https://www.aboveavalon.com/ ... https://twitter.com/…
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@cixliv
@cixliv
on x
So what's changing? #1 Apple headset. It could bomb, it could be a small deal, it could do really well. All hypotheticals. What is not a hypothetical: Apple entering a market validates it, increases investment and acquisitions. The “Apple Effect”.
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@julianward
Julian Ward
on x
@CixLiv No controllers for Apple 🥽👎🏼
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@cixliv
@cixliv
on x
So first things first. Unlike blockchain, web, consoles, mobile, AI etc. The XR industry is hard gated by hardware improvements. I've tweeted about this before. https://twitter.com/... Basically without big hardware advances, XR stays a heavy brick with limited use-cases.
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@cixliv
@cixliv
on x
2023 is the next big hype year for XR. For the lazy TLDR: XR more than any other technology industry waits on hardware improvements. Hardware is slow and generally sits in R&D, until one big tech company releases a product. A thread on the why 2023 will be huge 👇
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@cixliv
@cixliv
on x
Then we have Sony coming with the PSVR2, Snapchat, Niantic, Magic Leap, Pico (now billions from Bytedance money), startups like Lynx, HTC, Varjo, and Valve waiting in the shadows. Unlike the last few years, we will have real market competition!
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@cixliv
@cixliv
on x
So what? Well this means everyone needs an answer. The only thing that scares @Meta is the feds, and Apple. Meta's response to this headset will be the “Cambria” potentially “Quest Pro” when it's released. This will basically be a less powerful version of the Apple headset.
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@cixliv
@cixliv
on x
Summary: 2023 will be big with so much new hardware. - Increase potential of horizontal startups. - Loosen tight policies of existing companies to be competitive. - Increase market size. - Increase chance of exits + investment. Startups will have a fighting chance. Go time!
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@cixliv
@cixliv
on x
@julianward well yes, Apple has never been a fan of controllers. Will likely have the best industry hand tracking tough, and probably work with some form of hand/wrist worn IMUs in the form of a watch (rumors are of a thimble)?
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@nickwingfield
Nick Wingfield
on x
Why Apple needs 14 cameras (14!) in its mixed-reality headset and other great insights into what Apple's secretive project has been up to for the past few years by @waynema in @theinformation https://www.theinformation.com/ ...
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@gassee
@gassee
on x
14 cameras? How can a project like this ever converge? How about an exponential explosion of bugs? Affordable? https://t.co/FvWk2uAj1R
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@scobleizer
Robert Scoble
on x
That is a lot of cameras. Now my expectations are even higher. Cameras will be aimed at weird places, like at your eyes and ears to make things sound way better and give us new user interfaces that are controlled by our eyes. Next year is gonna be wild! https://t.co/QslKXhhP4b
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@_chuckyc
Charlie Chapman
on x
“The initial version of Apple's headset is said to lack a focus on gaming” I'm so confused as to what Apple's narrative around this product will be. I'm struggling to imagine one of their classic ads showing how this product enhances your life https://twitter.com/...
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@markdistef
Mark Di Stefano
on x
The level of detail in @waynema's latest about the development of Apple's mixed-reality headset is truly immense. https://www.theinformation.com/ ...
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@shortformernie
Ernie Smith
on x
Lo and behold, Jony Ive screwed it up. https://www.theinformation.com/ ...
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@alexqgb
Alex Bowles
on x
“Two people said even after Ive left Apple, some employees on the headset project were still required to make the trek from Cupertino to San Francisco, where Ive has a home, to get his approval on changes.” https://twitter.com/...
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@waynema
Wayne Ma
on x
Lifelike avatars, multiple chips and ambivalence for gaming. Apple's decision to change direction in 2019 for its mixed-reality headset has had lasting repercussions on the project. Check out part 2 of my deep dive on its AR/VR team for @theinformation https://www.theinformation.…