Meta Platforms Inc’s (NASDAQ: META) CEO Mark Zuckerberg believes that his company and Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) are in deep philosophical competition in the creation of the Metaverse. He suggests that the two tech giants are ready to compete in selling virtual and augmented reality hardware.
Facebook is in competition with Apple in defining Metaverse
Earlier this month, Zuckerberg told Meta staff that they were in competition with Apple to determine the direction the internet has to take. He asserted that Meta would present itself as the less expensive, more open rival to Apple, which is anticipated to introduce its first augmented reality headgear as early as later this year.
Zuckerberg stated, “This is a competition of philosophies and ideas, where they believe that by doing everything themselves and tightly integrating that they build a better consumer experience. And we believe that there is a lot to be done in specialization across different companies, and [that] will allow a much larger ecosystem to exist.”
Zuckerberg has been promoting the idea of compatibility for the Metaverse, or what he envisions as the next significant phase in technology after smartphones since changing the name of Facebook’s firm to Meta. Microsoft, Epic Games, and others recently joined Meta to launch the Metaverse Open Standards Group. The goal is to encourage the development of public protocols that should make it simple for individuals to transport their virtual commodities through immersive 3D worlds in the future.
Apple is not part of the Metaverse Open Standards Group
In his remarks to staff, Zuckerberg referred to Apple’s absence from the group as not unexpected. He said that while Apple’s strategy of creating software and hardware it closely controls had succeeded with the iPhone, “it isn’t really evident beforehand if a closed or open ecosystem is likely to be preferable” for the Metaverse.
Apple’s CEO Tim Cook has been open about the business’s interest in augmented reality as a category. Still, the company has remained, as is customary for it, mute about its upcoming hardware plans.
