Apple is getting serious about developing a virtual and augmented reality technology according to a report by the Financial Times. Apple recently hired Dr. Doug Bowman, the director of Virginia Tech’s center for human-computer interaction, and has acquired a number of VR/AR-focused startups in the past few years.
Apple has assembled what the Financial Times is calling a “secret research unit” of experts in the fields of AR and VR headset technology, according to people with familiar knowledge of the team. These experts were explained as being accumulated by Apple carefully over time through acquisitions and strategic hiring.
According to the Financial TImes , some of these AR/VR experts Apple hired apparently came from Microsoft, the team that created Microsoft Hololens, and virtual reality focused startup Lytro, who uses camera feeds to blend CGI with reality.
Some of the VR/AR-focused startups Apple acquired in recent years includes Emotient, a startup that uses facial expressions as a way of understanding human emotions, and VocalIQ Ltd. an a startup focused on deciphering natural speech patterns. Apple has also acquired Metaio, which created augment reality scenarios and Flyby Media, which created a messaging service that attached text and video to real world objects.
Apple was actually granted a patent almost a year concerning an iPhone-based virtual reality headset. Apple originally filed the patent back in 2008, although the concept of using a smartphone as the display and computing component is very similar to the Samsung Gear VR and the Google Cardboard Project.
Notable big name competitors in the VR field include the Sony PlayStation VR, the Oculus Rift and the HTC Vive, which was created out of a partnership of HTC and Valve.
iDigitalTimes requested a comment from Apple regarding the “secret research unit” that the Financial TImes reported on, but we have not received a response yet.
