What you need to know
- Meta and LG planned to challenge the Apple Vision Pro with a new "high-performance XR headset," likely called the Meta Quest Pro 2.
- An LG spokesperson said that LG has relocated most of the team from the project, essentially signaling that the headset has been canceled.
- Meta and LG will continue to partner for R&D on VR headset components, meaning we'll likely still get LG-made components in upcoming Meta Quest headsets.
Just as the Apple Vision Pro made its debut in February of this year, Meta and LG announced a strategic partnership "to release the highest-performance XR headset that surpasses Apple's 'Vision Pro' in the first quarter of next year." But it turns out that things weren't going according to plan and LG is canceling work on the aforementioned headset.
A report from ET News (via Road to VR) confirms that earlier rumors of a shaky partnership were true. Per an LG electronics official, the company has "recently finalized the policy of relocating personnel in charge of the XR business. The relocation will be carried out for about a month in consideration of the desired departments and workplaces, as well as the demand for additional manpower from other departments."
It's said that LG moved specifically because industry growth for a premium XR headset didn't align with the company's internal projections. Apple pulled in around $630 million dollars during the product's launch but reports since then have shown that demand for the company's $3,500 headset has significantly slowed down.
One year ago, it was said that Meta scrapped its own plans for an internally-developed Quest Pro 2, but Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth said that just one prototype headset was canceled and that the company works on several prototypes at any given time. Likewise, the report from ET News notes that Meta and LG's partnership isn't dissolved and that the companies will continue to partner on R&D for XR headset components in the future.
This means that LG-made displays and other important components should still be used in future Meta Quest headsets. Perhaps this means the Meta Quest 4 will use an LG-made OLED panel or that one of the upcoming Meta Horizon OS-powered headsets made by Asus and Lenovo might use other LG components.
Meta has neither confirmed nor denied its own plans for a Quest Pro 2 although, as said before, the company regularly tests out prototype devices that could one day become a proper consumer device. Whether one of these turns out to be called the "Quest Pro 2" or something entirely different will all depend on the circumstances.
We know that the upcoming Samsung XR headset made in partnership with Samsung and Google plans to challenge the Apple Vision Pro by attempting to beat it at its own game. Largely, that means providing super high-resolution displays and millions of apps available at product launch, which is currently expected for sometime in 2025.
Google also recently announced a partnership with AR glasses maker Magic Leap, which is likely to use the same Android XR operating system as the Samsung XR headset. Google quietly showed off XR tech at this year's Google I/O show, helping showcase what could become a mainstay in future human communication.
