Meta has made a bold strategic play in the escalating battle for virtual reality (VR) dominance. The company has unveiled plans to open-source its Quest operating system, now rebranded as Meta Horizon OS, to third-party device manufacturers. This move directly challenges Apple’s premium Vision Pro headset and aims to shape the future of the VR software landscape.
Meta’s decision mirrors the successful strategy Google employed with its Android operating system. By providing a foundational platform for smartphone makers, Google rapidly accelerated Android market penetration, eventually overtaking Apple’s iOS in user base size. Meta hopes to replicate this trajectory in the burgeoning VR market, positioning Horizon OS as the go-to choice for hardware manufacturers outside of Apple’s ecosystem.
This open-source approach has the potential to flood the market with diverse VR headsets running on Horizon OS, boosting user accessibility and affordability. It offers a distinct contrast to Apple’s typically closed, high-end strategy with the Vision Pro.
Meta has already secured major partnerships with industry players like Lenovo, Asus, and even Microsoft’s Xbox gaming division. These collaborations promise new VR experiences and potentially drive lower-cost options for consumers seeking to enter the virtual reality landscape. While Meta gains partners, Apple’s Vision Pro is likely to focus on its niche of professional and developer applications – a space where cost may be less of a deciding factor. The Vision Pro targets fields like design, engineering, and content creation with its superior graphics and processing capabilities.
The rivalry between Meta and Apple extends far beyond devices and operating systems. It centers on the race to establish dominance in the metaverse, a hypothetical future iteration of the internet composed of persistent 3D virtual spaces. The company that controls the major VR and mixed reality (MR) platforms has a distinct advantage in shaping this nascent digital frontier.
Meta’s strategic move to open-source Horizon OS is a calculated risk, poised to potentially boost VR adoption while challenging Apple’s dominance in the high-end market. This competition with Apple’s Vision Pro is expected to drive innovation, accelerating the development of more immersive, accessible, and affordable VR and mixed reality technologies. The next few years will be pivotal in determining the success of Meta’s gamble, as it endeavors to establish Horizon OS as the premier VR platform. Whether Meta can achieve this objective, or if Apple’s Vision Pro resonates with its niche audience, remains to be seen. Nevertheless, one thing is certain: the VR industry is about to get a lot more interesting.
