Apple Cancels Mac-Powered AR Glasses Project
Apple has reportedly cancelled its much-anticipated Mac-powered augmented reality (AR) glasses. According to a new report by Bloomberg, the company had been working on AR glasses that would rely on a Mac computer for processing power. However, following disappointing performance during internal tests, the project has been shelved.
Initially, Apple aimed to create a pair of AR glasses that would pair with the iPhone, similar to the vision behind the company’s Vision Pro headset. However, the iPhone’s processing power proved insufficient to handle the glasses’ features without severely draining the device’s battery. As a result, Apple shifted focus, opting to leverage a Mac for processing the AR glasses’ complex tasks.
The cancelled AR glasses were designed to run on visionOS, Apple’s operating system for AR. The glasses featured built-in displays capable of projecting images, information, and video directly into the user’s field of view. However, unlike the Vision Pro, these glasses lacked the ability to display a user’s eyes. Instead, the lenses featured a dynamic tint that would indicate the wearer’s status, signalling whether they were available or busy.
The glasses were not intended as a successor to the Vision Pro, which is more of a headset. They were meant to be more akin to competitors like XReal’s One glasses and Meta’s Orion prototype, which made waves at Meta Connect last year.
Despite the cancellation of this particular project, sources indicate that Apple is still committed to entering the AR space. The tech giant is reportedly continuing development on AR glasses, while also working on successors to the Vision Pro. However, internal challenges such as a “lack of focus and clear direction within the team” have been cited as contributing factors to the failure of the AR glasses initiative.
