SAN FRANCISCO Apple Inc is expected to announce a new headset that will blend virtual reality and video of the outside world at its annual software developer conference next week.
Mark Zuckerberg, Apple's CEO, and Tim Cook, the head of Meta Platforms Inc, are jockeying to define how consumers will use a new generation of technology where real and digital worlds collide.
The virtual universe, where people will gather to work and play, is called the metaverse, and Zuckerberg has created products for years.
By contrast, Apple's marketing chief, Greg Joswiak, called the metaverse a word I'll never use. And Apple's device is just a rumor. Apple's lectures at its worldwide Developers Conference begin Monday at 10 a.m. PDT 1700 GMT in California.
Until now, the company best known for iPhones has limited its augmented-reality initiatives to technology that works on existing devices, for example by enabling retailers' apps to show virtual furniture in a customer's living room.
The difference is that Meta is doing it publicly, while Apple is doing it privately, Sag said.
Analysts say the Apple device, which Bloomberg reported could cost about $3,000 and look like a pair of ski goggles, is a place holder of sorts. The company's ultimate goal is to produce a pair of transparent glasses that overlay digital information on the real world and can be worn everyday, every day, but in the face of competition, it decided to launch its own goggles.
Apple has declined to comment on its future plans and products.
The technology for Apple glasses is years away, and in the meantime, Apple's rivals such as Sony Group Corp and Pico, which is owned by TikTok parent ByteDance, have released mixed-reality headsets that hint at what is possible by blending the real and virtual worlds. Meta Platforms, Inc., yesterday announced its Quest 3 headset for $500, following last year's release of the Quest Pro, which sells for $1,000.
Since 2017 Apple has been implementing augmented reality features on its iPhones and iPads, but its widespread use has remained limited to a few furniture-shopping apps and a few games.
Apple's strategy of keeping its efforts private is that no one in Silicon Valley is quite sure how people will ultimately use mixed-reality technology, which industry insiders call XR for short. There is no killer app for the device yet, which hasn't been released yet.
So instead of aiming a mass-market price point, Apple appears to be launching a premium device that is aimed at showing software developers what is possible so they can come up with compelling apps.
No one there believes this market is anywhere near ripe in the foreseeable future, said Ben Bajarin, chief executive and principal analyst at Creative Strategies.
The biggest risk for Apple is putting its brand's reputation for polished products on the line, while battling Meta for dominance over a market that barely exists yet. Last year, Meta had 80 percent of an overall market for augmented and virtual reality headsets that were just 8.8 million units, according to data from research firm IDC. In contrast, IDC estimates that Apple sold 226 million iPhones.
While Meta has its products on the market, Apple has major advantages in defining the emerging field among software developers, said Jitesh Ubrani, a research manager who tracks the XR market at IDC. Developers who want to access Apple's installed 2 billion devices, including Apple Watches, iPhones, and Macs, have a strong relationship with Apple.
They can leverage the ecosystem they have already built to keep users within their walled garden, Ubrani said. Apple is in a better position to provide you with an experience that works across devices than Meta is.