Apple CEO Tim Cook Hints at AR/VR Headset: 'Stay Tuned and You'll See What We Have to Offer'

CEO Tim Cook this week did an interview with China Daily, where he once again commented on on the future of augmented reality and hinted at Apple's work on an AR/VR headset.

apple ar headset concept 2


Cook said that Apple is excited about the opportunities available with augmented reality, which is not too far off from prior comments that he's made, but he went on to say that people should "stay tuned" to see what Apple has to offer.

I am incredibly excited about AR as you might know, and the critical thing to any technology including AR is putting humanity at the center of it. And that is what we focus on every day. Right now, as an example, we have over 14,000 ARKit apps in the App Store, which provide AR experiences for millions of people around the world.

I think despite that, we're still in the very early innings of how this technology will evolve. I couldn't be more excited about the opportunities we've seen in this space and sort of stay tuned and you'll see what we have to offer.

Though Apple has not confirmed its work on an AR/VR wearable device, rumors have been circulating about it for years now. Apple's headset is expected to offer mixed reality technology, with a curved visor and soft mesh that fits against the face. It will be lighter than other headsets on the market, and will use an Apple Watch-like strap to hold it in place.


The headset is rumored to feature two 4K micro-OLED displays, 15 camera modules, powerful processors equivalent to the M-series chips, eye tracking capabilities, hand gesture support, and spatial audio. When it launches, the headset could cost somewhere around $3,000.

Apple is expected to debut the headset as soon as next year, and has already been demoing it to board members, suggesting it is getting closer to being finished.

Related Roundup: Apple Vision Pro
Buyer's Guide: Vision Pro (Buy Now)
Related Forum: Apple Vision Pro

Top Rated Comments

antiprotest Avatar
24 months ago
$2500 for 32GB iSee.

$3500 for 128GB iSee More.

$4500 for 256GB iSee Usable.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Seoras Avatar
24 months ago
I've been very under whelmed by having LiDAR on my iPhone. I've tried Apps supporting it and they're ok but nothing that makes me feel that the LiDAR is a must have feature. I wouldn't miss it if it was dropped. What percentage of iPhone owners would?
Tim's comment:

"we have over 14,000 ARKit apps in the App Store, which provide AR experiences for millions of people around the world."
makes me think that we're paying for hardware on our iPhones to allow Apple to nurture an early AR App eco-system.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
antiprotest Avatar
24 months ago
Apple's best AR/VR device yet.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
now i see it Avatar
24 months ago

and the critical thing to any technology including AR is putting memojis in the center of it
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Eso Avatar
24 months ago
This headset was completed months ago. However, they keep teasing it in order to scour the blogosphere for any idea what the hell to use it for.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
HiRez Avatar
24 months ago
I just can't get excited about it, but keeping an open mind, hopefully it'll be something incredible.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iOS 18 Siri Integrated Feature

iOS 18 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Friday April 12, 2024 11:11 am PDT by
iOS 18 is expected to be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. iOS 18 is rumored to include new generative AI features for Siri and many apps, and Apple plans to add RCS support to the Messages app for an improved texting experience between iPhones and Android devices. The update is also expected to introduce a more...
iOS NES Emulator Bimmy Feature

NES Emulator for iPhone and iPad Now Available on App Store [Removed]

Tuesday April 16, 2024 11:33 am PDT by
The first approved Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) emulator for the iPhone and iPad was made available on the App Store today following Apple's rule change. The emulator is called Bimmy, and it was developed by Tom Salvo. On the App Store, Bimmy is described as a tool for testing and playing public domain/"homebrew" games created for the NES, but the app allows you to load ROMs for any...
Delta Feature

Delta Game Emulator Now Available From App Store on iPhone

Wednesday April 17, 2024 9:58 am PDT by
Game emulator apps have come and gone since Apple announced App Store support for them on April 5, but now popular game emulator Delta from developer Riley Testut is available for download. Testut is known as the developer behind GBA4iOS, an open-source emulator that was available for a brief time more than a decade ago. GBA4iOS led to Delta, an emulator that has been available outside of...
iGBA Feature

Apple Removes Game Boy Emulator iGBA From App Store Due to Spam and Copyright Violations

Sunday April 14, 2024 9:22 pm PDT by
Apple today said it removed Game Boy emulator iGBA from the App Store for violating the company's App Review Guidelines related to spam (section 4.3) and copyright (section 5.2), but it did not provide any specific details. iGBA was a copycat version of developer Riley Testut's open-source GBA4iOS app. The emulator rose to the top of the App Store charts following its release this weekend,...
iPhone 15 Pro Action Button Translate

All iPhone 16 Models to Feature Action Button, But Usefulness Debated

Tuesday April 16, 2024 6:54 am PDT by
Last September, Apple's iPhone 15 Pro models debuted with a new customizable Action button, offering faster access to a handful of functions, as well as the ability to assign Shortcuts. Apple is poised to include the feature on all upcoming iPhone 16 models, so we asked iPhone 15 Pro users what their experience has been with the additional button so far. The Action button replaces the switch ...
iGBA Feature

Game Boy Emulator for iPhone Now Available in App Store Following Rule Change [Removed]

Sunday April 14, 2024 8:06 am PDT by
A week after Apple updated its App Review Guidelines to permit retro game console emulators, a Game Boy emulator for the iPhone called iGBA has appeared in the App Store worldwide. The emulator is already one of the top free apps on the App Store charts. It was not entirely clear if Apple would allow emulators to work with all and any games, but iGBA is able to load any Game Boy ROMs that...