In June, a Meta employee inquired about the impact of Apple’s absence from the Metaverse Standards Forum on Meta’s environment. According to an internal conference, Zuckerberg told staff that Meta will compete with Apple to choose “what direction the internet should go in.” “This is a fight of ideas and concepts,” Zuckerberg said of the gloomy rivalry. “They feel that by doing everything themselves and closely integrating, they provide a superior user experience.” “And we feel that there is a lot that can be done in terms of specialization across different organizations, and [that] will enable for a much wider ecosystem to flourish.” Zuckerberg has been pushing for the notion of interoperability for the metaverse, or what he envisions as the next big chapter of computing after mobile phones, since changing Facebook’s business name to Meta. Meta recently collaborated with Microsoft, Epic Games, and others to establish the Metaverse Open Standards Group. While Apple hasn’t officially unveiled any augmented or virtual reality devices, CEO Tim Cook has indicated an interest in the technology. Apple has long been believed to be working on a variety of AR and VR gadgets, including a high-end Apple VR visor focused on virtual reality and gaming. Apple is also said to be working on a smaller, lighter “Apple Glass” wearable that may be used in conjunction with an iPhone.
