Apple has reportedly poached two Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) experts from Oculus Virtual Reality and Magic Leap. The move indicates Apple's increasing interest in the field. Apple has boosted its AR and VR efforts by recently acquiring various small and medium sized companies.
During a recent appearance on Good Morning America, Apple CEO Tim Cook said that in his view, augmented reality has a wider scope than virtual reality. He said that augmented reality "gives the capability for both of us to sit and be very present talking to each other, but also have other things visually for both of us to see." He noted that AR has the potential of doing "a lot of really cool things."
In the wake of these comments, Business Insider reported that Apple has hired Zeyu Li from Magic Leap. This appointment comes after Apple hired Yury Petrov as a research scientist. Petrov previously worked at Oculus as well as Facebook's virtual reality platform.
Earlier this year, the Financial Times reported that Apple might be working on building a VR or AR headset. In 2015, the company acquired Metaio, an AR startup. Earlier this year, Apple also hired Doug Bowman, a leading Virtual Reality expert.
AR and VR are fast becoming the focus of mega-companies such as Google and Microsoft. According to Business Insider, Google has invested heavily in augmented reality startup MagicLeap. Microsoft is also working on HoloLens. Based on Cook's comment, it is highly likely that Apple will focus on AR.