Why visionOS could make you the next millionaire developer

I published a new video yesterday about why I’m bullish on spatial computing and how I’m supporting developers with my new business visionOS Dev Partners. I hope you give it a watch and let me know what you think! Here’s the gist:

There's a lot of cynicism about Vision Pro and people online rooting for its failure, but I'll tell you why I'm bullish on it:

Apple does not f**k around.

They don't ship new product categories as thought experiments to see what sticks.

Apple very deliberately introduced Vision Pro with the tagline "Welcome to the era of spatial computing" not because it's marketing jargon that sounds cool, but because it's what they actually believe.

The mere existence of this product in the marketplace reflects their long term commitment to creating a new paradigm for human computer interaction.

I'll be the first to admit Vision Pro is far from a perfect device. It's too heavy, it leaves awkward red marks on my face, and much of the software feels incomplete.

But to dismiss it as a failure four months after launch completely misses the massive long term opportunity this platform represents for developers, designers, and entrepreneurs.

People that build for visionOS now, that gain the learnings from iterating at the cutting edge, will reap outsized rewards in the future.

Imagine you could go back in time to the launch of the App Store in 2008 and tell your past self about the billion dollar companies like Uber, Snapchat, and Instagram that would be created in the next decade?

What would you be inspired to create, knowing those opportunities were possible?

Well I have great news for you: you don't need a time machine because we're having another iPhone moment all over again. It's not obvious because the technical challenges of building a computer that sits on your face instead of one that fits in your pocket makes the first generation Vision Pro far more expensive and out of reach for most people. For now.

Consider this: the original iPhone that shipped in 2007 had no App Store, selfie camera, or even video recording. Its screen was pixelated and the 2G cellular service was slow AF.

This is comparable to the Vision Pro we have today. As advanced as it is, this first generation is the slowest, heaviest, and dumbest it will ever be.

Today's iPhone is orders of magnitude more capable and powerful than the first one, and it's reasonable to believe the Vision Pro will follow a similar trajectory.

So no, I'm not upset that the hand tracking sucks and the battery only lasts for two hours. These problems will all be fixed in ways we can't even imagine today.

When you see beyond these shortcomings and zoom out to look at the bigger picture, spatial computing is our inevitable future.

For better or worse, the iPhone made smartphones commonplace. The world today hardly resembles the world we had in 2007, and Vision Pro represents the first step in another major shift.

The version of it 5-10 years from now that's lighter, can be used outdoors, and seamlessly interacts with the world around us will absolutely make our world closer to Ready Player One.

Maybe that sounds awesome or maybe that terrifies you, but this is the logical progression of the world's most valuable company investing billions of dollars to make this reality happen.

So the question is, what are you going to do about it? What role are you going to play? What spatial experiences will you create?

Magic Leap and Google form XR partnership

Arguably the biggest XR news of the week, Magic Leap and Google announced a “multi-faceted, strategic technology partnership with Google.” Having invested hundreds of millions of dollars in Magic Leap, this move makes a lot of sense for Google.

My take: Google took their foot off the gas after they abandoned Daydream, realized they’re behind Meta and Apple in this next cycle, and partnered with their portfolio company Magic Leap to shortcut a reentry into XR from a stronger position. Perhaps this partnership could power those AR glasses Google teased at I/O recently?

Apple announces Design Award finalists

Apple introduced a new spatial computing section to their annual Design Awards this year. They nominated Sky Guide, NBA, and djay within the app category and Synth Riders, Black Box, and Loóna: Cozy Puzzle Games within games.

There are few standout experiences for visionOS right now because the platform has not been around long enough to mature. I’m eager to see where we stand a year from now and the difference in quality time will bring.

Xreal Beam Pro with spatial video capture launches in China

Xreal released the Beam Pro in China, a companion device that powers their Air AR glasses. Starting at about $250, this device notably can record spatial video. With a nice 50mm gap between lenses, the stereo separation should be better than iPhone 15 Pro. It’s encouraging to see Android-based devices contribute to the spatial media ecosystem!

It’s fun to imagine where this form factor aligns with the direction Apple and Meta are heading, as it’s widely agreed that some kind of AR glasses would be the ultimate form factor for spatial computing.

Polycam now supports Spatial Personas

The SpaceTime community expands! Polycam recently upgraded their user-generated 3D scanning app to support Spatial Personas. Their dev Nick McCardel was kind enough to give us a demo last Friday in a SpaceTime meetup. It was an epic demonstration and a true taste of what Apple means when they say “spatial computing.”

Polycam and Beautiful Things are two of my favorite apps on Vision Pro right now because they both support SharePlay and showcase incredible 3D models.

ElevenLabs introduces text to sound effects

ElevenLabs is a leader in high quality AI-generated voices. Now they’re back with a new tool: text to sound effects. As AI video increases in quality and becomes more prevalent, tools like this will pair nicely to enhance the impact of the video. Interestingly, they trained it on licensed audio from Shutterstock.

After playing with it briefly, I’m happy to report it works quite well! It would be amazing if Adobe could integrate something like this directly into Premiere.

Image of the Week

I get a really uneasy feeling seeing this shut down button. It’s existence is a design solution to a problem that feels apocalyptic! Do robots dream when they’re powered off?

Star Wars Watch Party?

I’m checking back to see if there’s any interest in having a weekly watch party for new episodes of the latest Star Wars show The Acolyte on Disney+.