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Happy Lunar New Year to everyone! May the Year of the Snake shower you with joy, happiness, prosperity, success, love, and maybe even a few new XR headsets! For those who celebrate this wonderful occasion, I hope you have a fantastic time surrounded by loved ones … and indulge in lots of delicious food 😊. I’m swamped with work lately, so this newsletter is arriving a bit later and is slightly shorter this time, but it still packs all the must-know details about what’s been happening in the world of XR this week!
Top News of the Week
(Image by Google)
Google Acquires HTC Vive Engineers for $250M
In a surprising move, Google has scooped up a group of XR engineers from HTC Vive, along with a non-exclusive license to some of HTC’s intellectual property, for a staggering $250 million. While specifics of the deal are scarce, Google mentions that it aims to leverage these new talents to speed up the development of the Android XR platform across various headsets and glasses. This acquisition lets Google tap into the rich expertise of HTC engineers, potentially boosting product development. Whether these engineers will focus on Android XR alone or work on a new Google headset remains unclear, but my money is on the former. Google’s acquisition of HTC’s design team back in 2017 for $1.1 million highlights an ongoing collaboration between the two firms. This massive investment underscores Google’s commitment to pushing forward its XR ambitions with Android XR, despite the contingent nature of promises from large companies that can shift focus if more lucrative opportunities arise. Nevertheless, Google’s dedication to immersive realities is a good sign, even if I remain cautiously optimistic.
And as we focus on Google’s big move, another intriguing question arises: what does this mean for HTC? Losing a significant chunk of senior engineers to Google might indicate HTC’s shift in strategy, possibly towards building headsets for others or releasing fewer of its own. Only time will tell what’s next for this once-dominant VR market leader.
More Information
- Google Acquires HTC Engineers – Road To VR
- Google Acquires HTC Engineers – Upload VR
- Google’s Commitment to XR
Other Relevant News
Meta is Developing Multiple Smartglasses
Meta’s success with Ray-Ban smartglasses has spurred additional investment in this product category. According to a report by Mark Gurman, Meta is teaming up with EssilorLuxottica this year to launch new Oakley-branded smartglasses. Designed with a central camera for cyclists and athletes, these glasses aim to deliver audio through built-in speakers, minus a display. Additionally, Meta is working on a premium smartglasses model featuring a small display for notifications, with touch-sensitive frames or wrist strap controls being possible input methods. This high-end version targets a niche market of prosumers, priced around $1000.
Meta hasn’t forgotten about the original Ray-Ban Meta, planning big Super Bowl ads starring Hollywood celebrities. As for their Orion project, Meta aims to distribute the glasses to more developers by 2026, with no commercial launch expected until 2027 with a more affordable model dubbed Artemis. It’s great to see Meta pushing the envelope across all aspects of XR, from VR/MR to smartglasses and AR.
More Information
- Meta’s New Smartglasses in the Works – Road To VR
- Meta’s New Smartglasses in the Works – Upload VR
- Super Bowl Ad for Ray-Ban Meta
- Orion Glasses to Developers in 2027
- Original Report on Bloomberg
Meta Continues Work on a Quest Pro Successor
According to Mark Gurman, Meta is actively developing the Quest 4 VR goggles and a high-end headset potentially succeeding the Quest Pro mixed-reality headset. This new high-end model, perhaps called "Puffin," is a lightweight MR headset linked to an external battery. Despite the Quest Pro’s lackluster performance, Meta is clearly aware it needs a competitive edge against high-ticket rivals like Vision Pro or Project Moohan. A timely and refined Quest Pro 2 could carve out a niche in the enterprise market.
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Samsung and Google Reveal More About Moohan
Expectations were high for Samsung’s Unpacked event to reveal significant XR news, possibly AR glasses, but that reveal was a no-show. However, two noteworthy developments emerged. First, Google and Samsung showcased enhanced integration of Gemini AI into Samsung phones. This hint at greater AI incorporation beyond just the Moohan headset suggests broader device integration. Secondly, while Moohan demos occurred behind closed doors, attendees glimpsed the headset in public. Marques Brownlee, the renowned YouTuber, offered a sneak peek at the device, highlighting its Vision Pro-inspired design and VisionOS-like interface. Gradually, Samsung and Google are peeling back the curtain on the Moohan headset.
More Information
- Project Moohan at Samsung Unpacked
- MKBHD’s First Look at Project Moohan
- Improved AI Integration with Samsung Phones
News Worth a Mention
Meta’s Christmas Headset Bricking Explained
Mark Rabkin, Meta’s Vice President of VR/MR, shed light on why some headsets malfunctioned over the holiday season. It turns out the bug originated in the Android Open Source Project (AOSP): a rare "race condition" in the AOSP R/W ext4 filesystem that corrupted files, compounded by a crucial security patch that prevented OS rollback. Race conditions are notably challenging bugs to identify, replicate, and fix, but Meta managed to address it and informed Google to ensure a fix in AOSP directly.
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CM Games’ "Into The Radius 2" Grosses $3M
CM Games is reveling in the success of "Into The Radius," with the original game selling 800,000 units across platforms. Its sequel, "Into The Radius 2," currently in Early Access on Steam, has already generated $3 million in revenue. Engaging the Steam community in development has been key to this success, with player feedback helping refine the game for a polished Quest launch. According to CM Games CEO Vlad Rannik, while Quest is the bigger market, Steam offers an invaluable early user base in crafting an early-access release.
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CREAL Miniaturizes Its Lightfield Engine
CREAL, esteemed for its lightfield display innovation, has made strides in miniaturizing its lightfield engine, now almost fitting into standard glasses. This breakthrough brings realistic AR lightfields closer to being integrated into wearable devices. Compared to the bulky boxes CREAL’s tech was housed in 6-7 years ago, this leap forward is significant.
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Quest 3 Could Feature Automatic Room Scanning
Luna speculates that Meta aims to streamline mixed reality by automating room scanning, reducing friction points. Currently, manually scanning spaces can be a hassle, especially with dynamic room layouts. Automating this process could easily adapt to real-time room changes, marking a valuable advancement.
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A Thought-Provoking Video on AI Agents
The creative Keiichi Matsuda collaborated with Niantic on a captivating video imagining our future with augmented reality and ever-present AI agents. As with all of Keiichi’s work, it’s entertaining and inspiring, making it a must-watch.
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Content Updates
"Fitness Fables," a unique blend of fantasy action and VR fitness gameplay, is launching on Quest on January 30 for $12. FlatVR Studios is crafting "FlatOut VR," aiming to incorporate standout elements from all FlatOut games.
Kung Fu-based VR fighting game "Path of Fury — Episode I: Tetsuo’s Tower" hits Quest on March 12. "Elsewhere Electric," a co-op puzzle game, lets one user explore a VR world while another joins via mobile, and it’s arriving this spring/summer.
Bringing a classic to new realms, "The Smurfs — Flower Defense" is set to launch on Quest 3 in May as a mixed-reality tower defense experience. For those wondering, yes — you can now play Crysis in VR, too, thanks to a mod. So the next time someone casually asks if your VR rig can handle Crysis, answer with confidence: "Absolutely!"
More Information
- Fitness Fables Details
- FlatOut VR Details
- Path of Fury: Episode I Details
- Elsewhere Electric Details
- Smurfs: Flower Defense Details
- Crysis VR Mod Details
Other News
A GDC survey reveals that 35% of game developers are also embracing XR tech in some capacity. More exciting news include Apple’s new Miami store featuring a Vision Pro dedicated area, and you can snag Snap Spectacles at half-price if you’re a student or teacher.
Vrgamerdude gave a firsthand account of the Mudra Link neural bracelet experience, while Gabriele Romagnoli offered an insightful review of MR apps on the Horizon Store. Meanwhile, CaddieVision’s AI-powered AR glasses promise to revolutionize your golf game.
More Information
- More on Game Developers and XR
- Snap Spectacles Offer
- Mudra Link Neural Bracelet Insights
- Vision Pro Area in Apple Store
- MR Apps Analysis on Horizon Store
- CaddieVision AR Glasses for Golf
Partner News
Skylimb’s multiplayer mode goes free! Thanks to the indie game studio VRMonkey, everyone can now enjoy the multiplayer action in Skylimb, a platformer praised for its unique arm-based locomotion, reminiscent of Gorilla Tag. Dive in and give it a try!
Learn More and Try the Game
XR Fun Section
Having a VR enthusiast in the family can lead to some amusing situations, and you won’t believe it: you can now play DOOM inside a PDF file! Enhance your VR journey with non-tech gadgets and remember — there are always entertaining lessons to be learned, like why clearing your room is crucial during VR experiences!
Donate for Good
Instead of asking for contributions to the blog this week, I’m urging you to support those affected by the ongoing war. Please consider donating to the Red Cross to assist with the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. I deeply appreciate all my Patreon patrons for their continued support, and here’s a link for anyone who’d like to lend a hand:
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