Despite it seems that metaverse and NFT are fading, the largest companies in the world by market cap seem to believe in it, producing hardware for the sector. The latest news concerns Microsoft which, together with Samsung, will launch its line of headphones for mixed reality.
Metaverse and NFT: the launch of the new line of headphones by Microsoft with Samsung
Apparently, the metaverse and NFT sector continues to attract the operations of the largest companies in the world in terms of market cap. In fact, Apple, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and Nvidia, for example, are currently developing new devices for the metaverse.
The latest news concerns Microsoft which, together with Samsung, is ready for the production of OLED panels that could power a new line of headsets for mixed reality.
According to what reported, the Microsoft-Samsung partnership is in its early stages, with mass production that will not start before 2026.
This Microsoft device should challenge Apple’s Vision Pro headphones. Not only that, it is also rumored that the device would focus on viewing video and gaming content on a flat screen, not on involvement in the “metaverse”.
The mission of Microsoft seems to have been for a few years to push its applications towards the Meta Quest headset. It is an exciting amount of potential competition for the mixed reality space, provided that one of these headsets actually manages to get out the door.
Metaverse and NFT: Apple and Google and their devices
While Microsoft works on something that could arrive in the market in the near future, other corporate giants are already in the sector at this moment.
And indeed, as already mentioned, Apple has presented its Vision Pro AR/VR, last June 2023. The device represented for Apple its entry into the world of augmented reality and the metaverse.
At that moment, the Apple product was intended to compete with VR headsets like the Meta Quest and other major devices.
As for Google, instead, last June 2024 strengthened its partnership with the company Magic Leap to offer more immersive experiences and promote the AR/XR ecosystem.
Magic Leap has released a head-mounted augmented reality display, called Magic Leap One, which overlays computer-generated 3D images onto real-world objects.
The change of direction for Meta by Zuckerberg
Speaking of Meta, Mark Zuckerberg’s company, it seems that its name change to focus entirely on the metaverse is not yielding the desired results.
And in fact, in its Q2 2024 report released recently, an additional loss in the sector of 4.5 billion dollars is evident.
It concerns the activities on Reality Labs which, from 2019 to today, has a total loss of almost 60 billion dollars. Yet, not everything seems lost.
In compensation, in fact, it seems that Zuckerberg is making room for a new model based on Artificial Intelligence that is increasing his revenue, closing the quarter in the bull.