Apple Opens Applications to Give Developers Head Start on Vision Pro

Apple has opened applications for the Vision Pro developer kit, enabling developers to build and fine-tune the app months in advance of a planned 2024 launch.

According to the tech giant, the $3,499 Apple-owned development device will be loaned to successful applicants and will have to be returned after the actual launch. Selected developers will be able to review code and provide feedback on their milestone stages while Apple provides onboarding and ongoing code support.

The technology allows for apps to be ported between platforms and will prioritize companies that bring the headset’s capabilities into play. Apple is giving developers the opportunity to visit a “lab” in cities such as London, Shanghai, and Tokyo with the Vision Pro kit. That access will provide developers with a more immersive environment, per the report.

The Vision Pro is Apple’s first spatial computer and introduces the ability to create virtual objects and integrate them inside the headset’s HD screens just millimeters away from the eye. Applicants must specify their team’s development skills and existing apps and should detail what they plan to make and what Apple tools they’ve used. Those selected must also sign an nondisclosure agreement to prevent public discussion of the hardware.

Apple is also making it easy to bring iOS and iPadOS apps to the Vision Pro headset. Any apps that are already functioning will automatically port over without developers having to change anything when the headset officially launches.

Apple’s unveiling of the Vision Pro — “the first device you look through and not at,” according to Apple CEO Tim Cook — in June marked the company’s long-awaited entry into the mixed reality world.

When the Vision Pro comes to market, it is expected to be accompanied by 100 games and a Disney+ offering that can be used with the headset.

Reports from earlier this month suggested that Apple has scaled back the production of the headset amid manufacturing troubles caused by the complexity of the product.

To tackle these challenges, Apple now plans to make fewer than 400,000 headsets next year — down from its initial sales goal of 1 million, PYMNTS reported, per the Financial Times.