LogIn"Don't believe everything you read about what's been stopped or started."
Over the weekend, Meta has been in the spotlight as rumors about the cancellation of the company's Quest Pro series of AR/VR headsets have been circulating. The speculations originated from a report by The Information, which alleged that Meta had halted production of the Quest Pro headset and abandoned its future plans for Pro series mixed reality hardware, opting to focus more on the upcoming Quest 3, introduced back in early June and set to be launched this Fall.
Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth, who earlier characterized 2023 as a major turning point for the VR industry, recently addressed the allegation, strongly refuting the claim that the potential Quest Pro 2 has been officially canceled and urging people not to believe everything they read online.
Taking to Instagram to share his statement, Bosworth emphasized that the team is actively working on multiple prototypes in parallel for all of their projects. He suggested that The Information's report may have stemmed from a disgruntled employee whose project was discontinued. However, notably absent from Bosworth's statement were any comments regarding the speculation surrounding the already-released Quest Pro, leaving the rumors about the existing AR/VR headset up in the air.
"I have to explain this every year. There is no Quest Pro 2 headset until we decide there is," reads Bosworth's statement (via Road to VR). "What I mean by that is there are lots of prototype headsets – lots of them – all in development in parallel. Some of them, we say, 'That's not the right one," and we shut it down. Some of them, we say, 'That's the right one,' and we spin it up. What you need to understand is, until it goes out the door, it doesn't get the name. So, there might be a Quest Pro 2, there might not be. I'm not really telling you, but I will say don't believe everything you read about what's been stopped or started. A lot of times it comes from someone who's unhappy their particular project got cut when there are other projects that did not get cut."
In spite of the aforementioned statement, it is evident that Meta's Quest Pro initiative is facing some turbulent times. Initially introduced at a price of $1,500 in October 2022, Meta later made the decision to reduce the cost of Quest Pro by $500, bringing it down to its current price tag of $1,000. Concurrently, the Quest 2, a VR headset geared towards consumers, has also experienced several price fluctuations, ranging from $300 to $400.
So, is Bosworth's announcement genuine, or is it an attempt at damage control? Tell us your opinion in the comments! Also, don't forget to join our 80 Level Talent platform and our Telegram channel, follow us on Threads, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, where we share breakdowns, the latest news, awesome artworks, and more.