Meta’s Connect conference this week had much more buzz after Apple announced its Vision Pro mixed-reality headset in June.

Tom Symonds, CEO of Immerse, a UK-based VR company, said there is definitely curiosity around Apple entering the market.

Meta’s Quest 3 VR headset starts at $499, which is $200 more than its predecessor, but much cheaper than Apple’s.

One word was on everyone’s lips this week at Meta’s annual Connect conference on virtual reality and the metaverse: Apple.

In October, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg will launch the Quest 3 VR headset, which starts at $499. The company touted the growth of its VR app store – Quest Store – which has generated $2 billion in sales since its debut in 2019, up from $1.5 billion last year.

Attendees this year have a better understanding of Apple’s upcoming VR product than they did in 2022.

Next year, the iPhone maker will sell its Vision Pro mixed-reality headset for an eye-popping $3,499. Even though it’s Apple’s first foray into VR, the company’s reputation for winning hardware and its longstanding dominance in premium consumer devices have created a buzz that was absent from Meta’s prior industry events.

It is anticipated that VR and mixed reality will remain niche markets for many years to come, but the tone for developers and VR companies regarding the potential for an expanding industry has changed for nearly a dozen attendees this week at Meta’s Menlo Park, California, headquarters.

Tom Symonds, CEO of the UK-based VR firm Immerse, said there was curiosity surrounding Apple’s entry into the market. “Apple has always managed to marry hardware and software seamlessly.”

As a result of the drop-off in Web3 and related crypto projects, the VR industry was experiencing an identity crisis prior to Apple’s Vision Pro announcement. Despite losing billions of dollars a quarter, Meta hasn’t shown any interest in slowing down, frustrating many Wall Street investors who see only mounting expenses.