Apple may launch mixed reality device this year — but we're not scared, HTC CEO says

BARCELONA — The brag of user electronics steadfast HTC thinks Apple is going to motorboat its ain mixed world headset, but she's not disquieted astir the competition.

Speaking with CNBC astatine the Mobile World Congress successful Barcelona, HTC CEO and co-founder Cher Wang said the Cupertino tech elephantine was apt to motorboat a mixed reality, oregon XR, merchandise "very soon" — perchance arsenic soon arsenic this year. XR refers to technologies that blend the carnal and integer worlds.

"I deliberation the earliest [release date] whitethorn beryllium mediate oregon aboriginal this year," Wang said.

The institution volition apt prioritize specified a instrumentality implicit augmented world glasses, she added.

Apple did not instantly respond to a CNBC petition for comment.

It has reportedly indefinitely paused plans to motorboat AR glasses by 2025. The institution has agelong been rumored to beryllium moving connected its ain virtual and augmented world experiences. In January, Bloomberg reported that it is gearing up to merchandise a mixed world headset in the spring.

Apple often holds disconnected connected getting into a peculiar merchandise inclination oregon diagnostic until agelong aft different firms. For instance, the iPhone didn't get a camera with 2 lenses until 2017, years aft HTC introduced a dual camera with its HTC One M8 handset successful 2014.

"Apple is ever much cautious. I deliberation the marketplace is present large capable [that] they astir apt volition enter," Wang said.

But erstwhile Apple does yet marque its mode into a caller merchandise category, it tends to "redefine the mode that everyone thinks astir an opportunity," according to Leo Gebbie, main expert for connected devices astatine CCS Insight.

Neil Shah, probe vice president of Counterpoint Research, told CNBC: "XR is the newest signifier of however we tin interact otherwise with the satellite and tin alteration the paradigm of idiosyncratic computing."

"Apple and the full manufacture realizes the imaginable and hence privation to participate and yet pb this segment," helium added.

Apple wouldn't beryllium the lone institution getting successful connected the XR game. In October, Meta launched its $1,500 Quest Pro device, which lets users interact with virtual objects that look successful a full-color presumption of the satellite astir them.

Earlier this week, a Samsung enforcement said that the South Korean electronics elephantine is "working out" its mixed world strategy. Microsoft has its ain mixed world headset, called HoloLens. On Monday, Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi took the wraps disconnected of a prototype acceptable of augmented world glasses.

That volition mean much contention for HTC. In the 2nd 4th of 2022, the institution shipped implicit 100,000 XR devices, according to information from Counterpoint Research, up by 158% from 40,000 shipments successful the aforesaid play a twelvemonth prior. But its marketplace stock remains comparatively small.

If anything, Wang thinks that moves from Apple, Meta, Samsung and others successful the abstraction volition boost the wide adoption of mixed world devices, which she sees arsenic a boon to HTC's business.

"It's truly proven that our absorption is correct," she said. "Competition is ever good."

Once a large subordinate successful the smartphone market, HTC has staked its aboriginal connected the merging of virtual and carnal worlds. In January, the institution launched its Vive XR Elite device, a lightweight headset focused connected gaming, fittingness and productivity, astatine a $1,099 terms point.

HTC sold a chunk of its smartphone concern to Google successful 2018 for $1.1 billion.

The stake agelong word is that these devices volition beryllium however we interact with a mass-scale virtual satellite known arsenic the "metaverse." HTC has its ain alleged metaverse, named HTC Viverse, and the institution talked up its ambitions successful this country astatine the amusement this week.

"The metaverse is benignant of increasing successful a authorities wherever truthful galore societal media companies and walled plot companies are trying to physique it retired themselves," Shen Ye, HTC's planetary caput of product, told CNBC. "Our extremity is to marque definite it's arsenic unfastened and interconnected arsenic possible."

Buzz astir the metaverse has died down lately, arsenic the archetypal hype surrounding Meta's engagement has been wearing off. Worldwide shipments of VR headsets arsenic good arsenic augmented world devices income sank implicit 12% past year, according to IDC data.

Companies person alternatively steered toward artificial intelligence, the caller in-vogue tech taxable that has been catapulted to the apical of manufacture insiders' favourite trends by ChatGPT, a popular AI chatbot. At MWC, South Korean telecoms steadfast SKTelecom had a large motion that work "AI METAVERSE."

Donning 1 of HTC's XR devices, users tin immerse themselves successful virtual spaces oregon interact with 3D objects successful the carnal abstraction surrounding them.

In 1 acquisition shown disconnected astatine MWC, radical were invited to effort retired their boxing skills. A grid of 9 achromatic circles appears, and you were scored connected however rapidly you could punch them arsenic they lit up reddish 1 aft the different successful a random order.

Beyond the user space, HTC sees its exertion offering applications successful much commercialized and concern settings. The institution is moving with the United States Air Force and constabulary departments to transportation retired virtual grooming experiences, Wang said.

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