As rumors about Apple’s alleged AR/VR headset heat up, a new report says the company has hired Meta’s augmented reality communications lead. As reported by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman in his Power On newsletter, Apple hired Meta AR communications chief, Andrea Schubert, ahead of the launch for its mixed-reality headset.
Apple hires Meta’s comms chief to work on its AR/VR headset
From Gurman’s Power On newsletter:
Ahead of that launch, Apple is starting to get its ducks in a row. I’m told the company has hired Andrea Schubert, Meta Platforms Inc.’s communications and public relations head for its augmented reality efforts.
While it is possible the tech giant poached the Meta employee to work on its rumored headset, there are no signs to confirm the hiring took place. Schubert’s LinkedIn page currently states she is still working for Meta’s consumer hardware division as “Director of Communications, Augmented Reality & Research at Reality Labs.”
Schubert has worked at Meta since 2016 leading the AR, XR, Portal, and Research comms teams at Reality Labs (Meta’s consumer hardware division). She was involved in the launch of all Oculus VR headsets from 2016-2020: Oculus Rift & Rift S, Oculus Go, Oculus Quest & Quest 2.
As of right now, the rumored launch timeframe for Apple’s AR/VR headset is 2022, possibly towards the end of March. It is possible the device will be announced in the first quarter of 2022 and will hit stores later in the year. With the Cupertino tech giant entering a new market with this rumored launch, it is important to ensure the headset lives up to the hype. Schubert could be an invaluable asset for Apple considering her history in launching AR/VR devices.
So, what we currently know about the headset’s design is that it is allegedly similar to Facebook’s Oculus device but will be lightweight, less than 150 grams, for more comfortable all-day wear. To achieve that, the company will use Fresnel’s hybrid ultra-short focal length lenses and OLED displays with 3,000 PPI.
Powered by an M1-like processor, the device will also feature advanced hand gesture detection, eye tracking, iris recognition, voice control, skin detection, facial expression detection, and spatial detection. The exact price of the device is unclear as of now, but reports indicate it will come with a hefty price tag.
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