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Microsoft unveils a developer preview of Windows Volumetric Apps, which will let developers use an API to put Windows apps in 3D space on Meta Quest headsets

*Continuing investments in WinUI3 and WPF to help developers build rich, modern Windows applications* …

The Verge Sean Hollister

Context & Ripple Effects

Microsoft has repeatedly explored Windows in mixed-reality settings, from Windows 10 apps demonstrated on HoloLens to a Windows 10 feature for compositing 3D imagery into video. This preview shifts that experimentation toward a developer API for placing existing Windows applications in headset-based 3D space.

The move also sits alongside Microsoft's January launch of Mesh as a Teams-based 3D meeting platform with Meta Quest support. Later coverage of a planned Windows 11 public preview for Quest 3 and 3S suggests the app API and broader Windows access are parts of a continuing Quest integration path.

First-order effects

  • Windows developers can begin evaluating an API for positioning Windows apps in 3D on Meta Quest headsets, rather than treating the headset solely as a conventional display endpoint.
  • Microsoft extends its WinUI 3 and WPF investment into a new spatial deployment surface, while Meta Quest gains a developer-facing Windows application use case.

Second-order effects

  • Developers considering spatial interfaces can weigh adapting established Windows app frameworks against building separate immersive experiences, making framework compatibility a more important adoption factor.
  • The preview creates a technical bridge that aligns with Microsoft's later plan to bring fuller Windows 11 capabilities to Quest, increasing the value of consistent Windows-to-Quest tooling if both efforts mature.

Third-order effects

  • If developers adopt the API, spatial computing could become an additional interface layer for conventional productivity software instead of a market limited to purpose-built VR applications.
  • The strategic question is whether headset platforms can sustain Windows application workflows at sufficient quality and scale; the preview establishes the integration path but does not settle developer or user demand.

The trend: Microsoft is progressively treating Meta Quest as a potential spatial endpoint for Windows software, linking immersive collaboration and conventional application delivery.

Related: Microsoft · Meta Quest · Windows Volumetric Apps · Microsoft's Windows 11 plan for Quest · Microsoft launches Mesh for Teams · Microsoft demos Windows 10 apps on HoloLens

Related Coverage

Discussion

  • @carnage4life Dare Obasanjo on x
    Microsoft is going to enable Windows developers to build 3D apps on Meta Quest devices. They are calling them Windows Volumetric Apps. The next phase of AR/VR device platforms is gearing up to be interesting as Meta's Quest platform opens up to others. [video]
  • @nathievr @nathievr on x
    @SadlyItsBradley Finally there will be more than just web versions
  • @joelmartinez Joel Martinez on x
    Fantastic! Love seeing this becoming a new category of operating system and app modality. I love the vision, but love setting meta bringing the ecosystem heat
  • @da_real_hugo Jonathan Chavez on x
    Slowly...then quickly. I retain conviction in the thesis that VR is, in essence, following a very similar trajectory as the early PC era - and that the smartphone paradigm is the wrong framework to make sense of the space. Growth in the overall install base may be more
  • @drbarnard David Barnard on x
    The Quest 3 is currently quite far behind the Vision Pro (no matter what Zuck says), but Meta is moving fast and will borrow tech from the Quest Pro.  It's not inconceivable that Meta could lap Vision Pro with a sub-$1k device before Apple ships a new headset.  They are already s…
  • @kylebrussell Kyle Russell on x
    suddenly you can picture a world two years from now where there's basically parity between the brand new Xbox (Meta Horizon OS) headset and the Apple Vision Pro + Mac ecosystem
  • @sadlyitsbradley Brad Lynch on x
    This is the type of partnership I was hoping to see after the Xbox/ASUS Horizon OS partnerships Only makes sense
  • @jcorvinusvr @jcorvinusvr on x
    @SadlyItsBradley Crazy how fast VR is accelerating. It's gonna get wild, real soon IMO
  • @cade_xr @cade_xr on x
    @SadlyItsBradley I really want some third party apps to take this jump now, would love to see DaVinci Resolve in Quest
  • @firt Maximiliano Firtman on x
    Windows Volumetric Apps? I'm wondering why they didn't just use the holographic term used by Windows Holographics a few years ago, with Hololens. 🤔