According to reports, Meta, Microsoft and other technology giants vying to build the concept of the metaverse have just formed an organization to set industry standards, in order to make the digital world of these companies can interact with each other compatible.
The group, called the Metaverse Standards Forum, announced at its inaugural meeting on Tuesday that its members include many of the largest tech companies, from chip makers to game companies, as well as existing standards-setting organizations such as W3C.
It is worth noting that Apple is not involved in this organization. But analysts expect Apple to become the dominant player in the space once it launches a mixed reality headset this year or next. Gaming companies such as Roblox and Niantic were also absent from the forum, as were emerging crypto metaverse platforms such as The sandbox and Decentraland.
Apple has yet to publicly acknowledge plans for a mixed reality headset, but reports say the company has demonstrated the product to its board of directors. Apple has yet to comment on the newly formed Metaverse Forum.
Launching such a device would put Apple in direct competition with Meta, which has bet its future on the growth of the Metaverse and invested heavily in developing hardware to realize its grand vision of a connected virtual world.
Meta was previously called Facebook, and it changed its name last year due to a metaverse transformation. The company has revealed plans to develop a mixed-reality headset codenamed Cambria, which is set to launch this year.
Before, Apple has not been deeply involved in the formulation of web standards such as HTML5. As for 3D content in the Metaverse, Apple worked with Pixar to develop the “USDZ” file format and worked with Adobe to ensure it was supported.
Chipmaker Nvidia executive Neil Trevett chairs the Metaverse Standards Forum. He said in the statement that the organization welcomes anyone to join, including participants in the cryptocurrency industry.
The forum aims to facilitate communication between various standards bodies and businesses, with the hope of introducing “real-world interoperability” to the Metaverse. But he did not mention how Apple’s absence would affect that goal.
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