Apple CEO Tim Cook talks about Apple Vision Pro and spatial computing as ``one of the points that will lead to an unexpected future''

Apple's first headset-type spatial computing device, Apple Vision Pro , will be released in the United States on February 2, 2024. Vanity Fair, an American monthly magazine, introduces comments from CEO Tim Cook when asked about the prospects for Apple Vision Pro.

Why Tim Cook Is Going All In on the Apple Vision Pro | Vanity Fair
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/tim-cook-apple-vision-pro

Apple Vision Pro is a device that can display application windows and content in 3D space. A micro OLED (organic EL) display with a resolution of 3,800 x 3,000 pixels per eye inside the goggle-shaped headset displays the surrounding scenery captured by the camera installed in the goggles as a full-color pass-through image, so you can see it in real life. You can experience MR (Mixed Reality), which is a combination of reality and virtual reality.

What kind of OS is 'visionOS' installed in Apple's mixed reality headset 'Vision Pro'? -GIGAZINE

However, Apple calls the experience with Apple Vision Pro 'spatial computing' and requires app developers to call it spatial computing instead of AR or VR.

Apple is asking developers to call apps for Apple Vision Pro 'spatial computing apps' rather than 'AR apps' or 'VR apps' - GIGAZINE

Vanity Fair introduces comments by Apple's CEO Cook about his outlook on spatial computing.

According to Vanity Fair, CEO Cook first experienced Apple Vision Pro several years before its release when he tried it on at a top-secret facility where Apple's product development takes place. The Apple Vision Pro that Cook experienced was one of the earliest prototypes, so it looked like a huge box-shaped machine with a camera and wires sticking out, and it was connected by wire to a development supercomputer, and when it worked, it made a buzzing sound from a large fan. Apparently there was a loud exhaust noise.

However, when CEO Cook put the machine box on his head and pressed the button, his vision changed to the surface of the moon and the Apollo 11 crew waving in front of him. I could see it. Although the device was still under development, Cook said that the moment he experienced it, he thought, ``We should add this device to Apple's next product category.''

CEO Cook commented on how the prototype, which was 'a huge mechanical box connected to a supercomputer with a mess of cameras and wires,' was able to be downsized to the size of goggles in order to commercialize it as Apple Vision Pro. 'We've known for years that we would get here. We didn't know when, but we knew we would get here.'

However, after experiencing the Apple Vision Pro in advance, a Vanity Fair reporter pointed out that there is room for improvement in terms of its size and weight, suggesting that we have not yet reached the ``point'' that CEO Cook talks about. I'm sure.

Also, a certain investor told a Vanity Fair reporter about Apple Vision Pro, ``I certainly think the technology is amazing, but I hope it fails.'' Investors were worried that Apple Vision Pro would create new slaves, just as people became slaves to smartphones.

Recalling the words of an investor, the reporter asked CEO Cook, ``I think technology is progressing too quickly. What will it be like?' he asked.

CEO Cook said, ``I think it's difficult to predict accurately.What we do is get really excited about something, and then start following the threads that lead to it, and ultimately... It's about seeing where you end up. Sure, Apple has drawn a roadmap and has a definitive view, but a lot of it is exploration and unraveling. Sometimes the dots connect, and you end up in unexpected places. I will be guided by it,' he said.

According to Vanity Fair, ``drawing a path to connected points'' is a theme that Cook's predecessor Steve Jobs often talked about. The important question here is, 'Will the spatial computing technology proposed by Apple Vision Pro become the next essential technology?' In other words, will spatial computing make people's lives better, or will it just be an inconvenience without it? Cook believes the future lies in 'unexpected places.' I confessed it frankly.

Additionally, Apple has announced that over 600 apps will be released for Apple Vision Pro. Furthermore, the game development framework Unity has revealed that it will also support spatial computing for Apple Vision Pro, and Microsoft has also announced that it will release its Microsoft 365 suite for Apple Vision Pro.