Apple CEO Tim Cook explains why people would want to buy a mixed-reality headset

Cupertino has been silent on the development of the mixed-reality headset, which has been in development for at least 7 to 8 years. The consumer market for Extended reality(XR) headsets is still niche, with many arguing whether or not Apple should get into the headset space citing a lack of use case. Cook, however, thinks that there is a potential use case for such a device, especially in “art, communication, “creative” applications, and corporate environments.”

Mixed reality is a technology that combines some aspects of both AR and VR. While VR and AR have had there for decades, mixed reality tech came to the limelight in 1994. The term was first widely discussed in a paper by Paul Milgram and Fumio Kishino, titled “A Taxonomy of Mixed Reality Visual Displays.” The paper explored the idea of a virtual continuum, which was defined as “the mixture of classes of objects presented in any particular display situation, where real environments are shown at one end of the continuum, and virtual environments, at the opposite extremum.”

Before Apple, several companies tried making a mixed-reality headset but most of them failed to capitalise on technology that brings the best of AR and VR worlds. Even VR headsets haven’t taken off as much as some had hoped for, the recent example being Sony’s PlayStation VR 2, which has reportedly sold 270,000 units worldwide since launch. Facebook parent Meta under the leadership of Mark Zuckerberg has also struggled to find success with its virtual reality business.

In the past, Cook had acknowledged his skepticism towards smart glasses which he thought people would not want to wear. However, Cook admits his thinking has evolved, and he now sees the potential for Apple to create something truly innovative in the AR/VR space. Cook is a believer, as Apple likes to control every part of product development, of owning the primary technology, rather than piecing together other companies’ offerings, to drive innovation and create a unique product.

Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman and Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo have been reporting on the mysterious Apple mixed-reality headset for years. Bloomberg reported that the company expects to sell around one million units in the device’s first year. Meanwhile, The New York Times recently reported that within Apple there has been rare dissent over the headset’s success due to the uncertain economic environment, not-so-appealing use case, and sky-high price of $3000.

According to a report from the Financial Times, Apple’s operations team originally wanted to release the headset in a ‘version one’ ski-goggles form, with limited capabilities like 3D videos, interactive workouts and VR FaceTime. However, the industrial design team argued that the headset should be pushed back until it archives to make the device lighter. This was the same team once headed by legendary industrial designer Jony Ive who left Apple in 2019. But Apple CEO Tim Cook has sided with operations chief Jeff Williams to launch the headset in 2023 after numerous delays to ship the device.

The VR/AR will reportedly include two 8K displays and more than a dozen cameras for hand-tracking. The mixed-reality headset is also expected to feature a digital crown, allowing you to switch between VR and virtual pass-through. The headset will have its operating system as well as the App Store.