2014 doesn’t seem that long ago to me. But in technology, 10 years can be an infinity. I was writing for CNET, like I still am today, but smartwatches weren’t even mainstream yet. And even though Facebook bought Oculus that year, ahead of the expected release of the Oculus Rift, the only VR available in any finished form that year was a phone-connected pair of plastic goggles known as the Samsung Gear VR.
In 2024, VR’s still not massively adopted, but it has gone mainstream several times over. I know plenty of families with Quest 2 headsets doing workouts or using them for games. And now even Apple is exploring virtual and mixed reality with its first headset, the Vision Pro. Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses, meanwhile, have started to feel less absurd as a wave of AI wearables coming from startups like Humane and Brilliant Labs emerge into similar territory. Meta is bringing its own AI features to the glasses this month.Â
For a trip back in time and a look forward, I spoke with Meta’s chief technology officer Andrew Bosworth about where Meta could be headed next: with the Quest 3, with AI, with smart glasses and with AR glasses to come.
Getting more people into headsets and glasses: Will fitness-focused Quests be a part?
One unexpected part of Meta’s Quest headset success story to this point is how much fitness apps have played a part. It’s been one of the biggest things I use the Quest for. And yet, even with the inroads Meta’s made in fitness and gaming, they’re not enough. Meta’s sold millions of Quests, but those numbers pale in comparison to the number of global Facebook subscribers. Bosworth wants to deepen the appeal of the Quest, maybe by expanding the product line in new directions.
“I like fitness, because it’s a good example of a market of people who would not otherwise be on this device or any device like…
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