Apple’s CEO doesn’t believe in Mark Zuckerberg’s metavers. In an interview, Tim Cook reveals why he doesn’t use the word, preferring the concept of augmented reality…
For several months now, Silicon Valley and the digital giants have been swearing by the metaverse. A collective fascination seems to have conquered the small world of tech. However, one of the GAFAMs has remained on the sidelines from the outset and has not shown as much interest for the virtual world…
In an interview with Dutch magazine Bright, Apple CEO Tim Cookreveals that his reluctance to embrace the metaverse is deliberate.
As he explains, ” I think it’s always important for people to understand what things are. And I’m really not sure that the average person can tell you what a metaverse is “.
As a reminder, this term comes from science fiction and refers to a three-dimensional version of the Internet accessed via immersive technologies such as virtual reality headsets rather than 2D screens.
Apple only uttered the word “metavers” once in 2022
During the year 2022, the word “ metavers “was on everyone’s lipsbut Apple only mentioned it once when announcing its financial results. In comparison, Meta said it more than 36 times.
In reality, although this word is copiously used as a marketing argumentBusiness leaders are divided by this buzzword. Some see it as a genuine business technologyOthers see it as a fanciful concept that may never exist…
Meta sees Apple as its main rival
Paradoxically, in July 2022, Mark Zuckerberg told his employees that Meta is ” in a profound and philosophical competition “with Apple to create the metaverse.
Although the iPhone manufacturer refuses to use the word “ metavers “The company is investing heavily in augmented reality. Asked in January 2022 about Apple’s role in the metaverse, Tim Cook replied that the company ” is always exploring new and emerging technologies “and refers to 14,000 ARKit applications available on the App Store.
In the interview with Bright, Tim Cook reiterated his firm belief that ” augmented reality will change everything “. Apple’s augmented reality glasses are planned for 2024. On the other hand, he believes that the ” virtual reality is not a way of living your whole life “.
Augmenting reality rather than virtualizing it
According to him, VR is ” something you can really immerse yourself in, and this can be used in a good way. VR is for regular periods of time, but not a way of communicating properly. So I’m not against it, but it’s not the way I see it. “.
So, the two digital giants seem to be are at odds over how to conceive the virtual world. Where Mark Zuckerberg and Meta seek to immerse us fully in the metaverse, Tim Cook is more interested in exploiting technology to improve the real world…
What’s your vision for the future of the metaverse? Would you be prepared to live totally in the virtual world, or would you like to keep one foot in the real world? Reply in the comments to share your vision!