Xcode 11 GM Confirms Apple's Work on AR Headset

Code found in the golden master version of Xcode 11 confirms that Apple is working on an augmented reality headset of some kind, and perhaps planned to announce it at the event but scrapped the debut last minute.

9to5Mac's Guilherme Rambo and developer Steve Troughton-Smith found that Xcode 11 features an ARDisplayDevice framework with references to codenamed Apple headsets that are in development, including Franc, Luck, and Garta (which pertains to HoloKit, a third-party device).

apple glasses concept mockup

An Apple Glasses mockup

References to these names were previously discovered in iOS 13 code alongside a STARTester app able to switch in and out of a head-mounted mode, replicating the functionality of an augmented reality headset on an iPhone for testing purposes.







There was also a reference to a StarBoard system shell for stereo AR-enabled apps, which has also been located in the Xcode 11 GM by developer Steve Troughton-Smith, along with a ReadMe file that specifically references an Apple "HME" headset.

It's not entirely clear what Apple is working on, but as 9to5Mac outlined last week, the stereo augmented reality data found in the iOS 13 and Xcode 11 GM code references support for a face-mounted AR experience said to be more similar to Google's Daydream than a pair of smart glasses.

The fact that Apple left this code in the Xcode 11 GM suggests that it was perhaps something that the company originally planned to talk about today, though it's not known if that is indeed the case.

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Top Rated Comments

bbednarz Avatar
76 months ago
Amazing how they leave all this info right on their doorstep.
Almost like they did it intentionally..
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iDento Avatar
76 months ago
You all will look dorky and stupid wearing one of these, no one will buy them, X company tried and failed*

says the people who said the same thing about AirPods and Apple Watch.

*X company is Snapchat, not google, google was just horrible at marketing their glasses just like any product they make that’s not free, because ironically the company that lives and dies on ads sucks at selling products to average people (not techies).
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gleepskip Avatar
76 months ago
I think they would have announced it today, but they ran out of presenters representing all the permutations of demographics. :P
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
tzm41 Avatar
76 months ago
This is almost certainly the personal computing device Apple is investing into next, now that iPhone has plateaued as a platform and its future potential limited.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
radiologyman Avatar
76 months ago
If Apple does it right, an instant buy for me!
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jonblatho Avatar
76 months ago
This should have never made it into the GM. More evidence software development incompetence at Apple.
What it’s “more evidence” of is that Apple most likely intended to announce this hardware today to ship later — it is rumored to enter production late this year or early next — and then changed their minds.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)