Apple CEO Tim Cook sounds very upbeat about the potential for augmented reality in a new interview. He says the technology “could greatly enhance people’s communication, people’s connection.”
Cook stayed mum about a related tech, virtual reality, though.
Apple CEO says AR can ‘accelerate creativity’
The executive had to field questions about AR and VR in an interview in GQ because it’s an open secret that Apple is about to introduce a headset that employs both. A long series of leaks have revealed many of the most important details, and the launch is expected in June at WWDC23.
Cook didn’t confirm the leaks, but he was willing to talk about augmented reality in general. He told GQ:
“The idea that you could overlay the physical world with things from the digital world could greatly enhance people’s communication, people’s connection. It could empower people to achieve things they couldn’t achieve before. We might be able to collaborate on something much easier if we were sitting here brainstorming about it and all of a sudden we could pull up something digitally and both see it and begin to collaborate on it and create with it. And so it’s the idea that there is this environment that may be even better than just the real world — to overlay the virtual world on top of it might be an even better world. And so this is exciting. If it could accelerate creativity, if it could just help you do things that you do all day long and you didn’t really think about doing them in a different way.”
AR versus VR
As noted, Cook apparently had nothing to say about virtual reality. AR overlays the real world with computer-generated content, but VR replaces everything with computer images. Companies like Meta continue to throw their weight behind VR, although critics call the technology isolating.
Cook’s comments seem to indicate Apple’s focus is on AR, though the headset Apple is about to launch reportedly supports both VR and AR.
VR headsets are already available, but only as a niche product. AR isn’t likely to become mainstream until the debut of lightweight headsets that can be worn anywhere, and the necessary technology for that isn’t yet available.
Apple is working on AR glasses but has run into difficulties. A potential release date is certainly years away.
