Apple CEO Tim Cook believes that most people could not even define the metaverse, let alone spend extended amounts of time spending their lives there, despite the fact that Meta invests billions on CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s proposal for the metaverse.
Cook stated to the Dutch journal Bright, “I always think it’s crucial that people grasp what something is” (via Google Translate). And I’m not sure whether the typical individual could define the metaverse. Cook isn’t ready to assert that Apple is working toward any alleged “metaverse,” despite recurring rumours that the business is interested in developing a variety of AR and VR products.
The opinion of Mark Zuckerberg is different. The CEO of Meta said earlier this year that the business and Apple are engaged in a “very profound, philosophical struggle” to create the metaverse. Zuckerberg compared Apple’s closed strategy with Meta’s more open development, saying: “This is a competition of philosophies and ideas, where they feel that by doing everything themselves and closely integrating that they provide a better user experience.”
Cook also voiced doubt about people’s desire to engage in prolonged VR usage in the future. “With virtual reality, you can fully immerse oneself. And that may be put to good use. However, I don’t believe you want to live that way for the rest of your life, he said Bright. VR is not a good method of communication; it is for limited durations only.
Cook also voiced doubt about people’s desire to spend a lot of time in virtual reality in the future. “VR is a medium that allows for complete immersion. That can also be put to good use. But I don’t believe you want to live that way your entire life, he said Bright. “VR is for specific periods of time, but not a good method of communication.”
With his remarks, Cook has joined a growing list of prominent CEOs who have expressed doubts about the metaverse. According to Snap CEO Evan Spiegel, the phrase is avoided by the firm since it is “very imprecise and hypothetical,” and if a room of people were asked to explain it, all of their answers would be “completely different.” David Limp, the president of devices at Amazon, has said that there is no “common meaning” of the phrase and that if he polled 100 individuals on what they believed the metaverse was, he would receive 205 different replies.
Although Cook, Spiegel, and Limp all expressed public scepticism of the word “metaverse,” it has been claimed that Apple, Snap, and Amazon are all making varied degrees of investments in technology that is comparable to that which Meta believes will someday power its metaverse future. Cook is a huge supporter of augmented reality, and Apple may reveal a hybrid VR/AR headset as early as 2023. Snap, meantime, debuted its first set of AR glasses as a restricted beta last year and claims that millions of people now use the app to interact with AR. Over the years, Amazon has produced a number of augmented reality applications, and it is said that the company is working on at least one augmented reality gadget.
After purchasing Oculus in 2014, Meta, on the other hand, has already produced a number of virtual reality headsets. The first set of augmented reality glasses is anticipated to be made accessible in 2024, however initially, only developers will have access to them.
Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, is not a fan of the metaverse and believes a new technology will define the future.
The hype around the idea of a metaverse has just been doused with cold water by Tim Cook, another well-known personality in technology.
The Apple CEO stated to the Dutch daily Bright on Friday, “I always think it’s crucial that people understand what something is. And I’m not sure whether the typical individual could define the metaverse.
It’s not unexpected that Apple hasn’t yet made any plans for the metaverse public. The word “metaverse” is often used to refer to virtual reality (VR) platforms where users may communicate, work, shop, and play games utilising immersive technologies like a virtual reality headset. Many of the greatest names in technology are striving to create the gear and software required for people to spend a lot of time — and money — in the metaverse, even though these virtual worlds already exist, in some form.
The idea of the metaverse is very important to Mark Zuckerberg and Meta. Disney and Microsoft have each released ideas for the metaverse.
However, other experts contend that the hoopla surrounding the metaverse is at least largely due to a lack of public understanding. Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt noted that “there’s not a consensus on what the metaverse is” in June, summarising the overall perplexity surrounding the idea.
Evan Spiegel, the CEO of Snap, described the concept of the metaverse as “ambiguous and speculative.” He has instead promoted his company’s ambitions for augmented reality (AR), which combines virtual objects and pictures with the actual world.
Cook is a strong supporter of augmented reality, and according to Bloomberg, Apple is working on an AR/VR headgear that might be released in 2023. According to Cook, augmented reality “will go much, much further” than its current uses in the future.
Cook declared, “I think augmented reality is a significant technology that will touch everything. Imagine being able to educate and explain concepts via augmented reality at any time. for example, medically. We will, as I already stated, reflect on our past and consider how we once survived without AR.
Before appearing at the University of Naples Federico II’s commencement ceremony last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook visited the U.K. and Germany as part of a European trip. Cook predicted during a Q&A session at that ceremony that soon people will compare augmented reality to the internet, which is pervasive and hard to live without.