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Apple's Vision Pro Layoffs Were Broader Than First Reported

Recent layoffs of Apple employees working on the Vision Pro were broader than previously thought, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.

apple vision pro orange
Last month, Gurman said that Apple cut around 100 jobs from the Vision Products Group, with those cuts centered on the headset's gaming and immersive video teams. Gurman now says the layoffs also reached Vision Pro staff across the rest of the company, including people working on device security, audio engineering, Siri integration, testing, and visionOS. The cuts follow the June departure of Paul Meade, the executive who ran Apple's Vision Pro and smart glasses division, who left Apple for OpenAI.

Gurman reports that people inside the Vision Pro group have spent months lobbying new CEO John Ternus to stay the course on the platform even as sales continue to underwhelm. Colleagues who have discussed the headset with Ternus say he was skeptical of it from the start, seeing it as too bulky and too costly to reach a mass audience.

Interestingly, since visionOS apparently runs on Apple's upcoming smart glasses, the wider layoffs impact software shared across both product lines rather than the headset alone. Ternus is still said to support Apple's smart glasses project, code named N50, which remain on track for launch next year, but Gurman says he would consider walking away from head worn devices as a category altogether if they never catch on with buyers. That willingness also could weigh on the overhauled Vision Pro successor, code named N224, which is not expected before the end of 2028.

Related Roundup: Apple Vision Pro
Buyer's Guide: Vision Pro (Neutral)
Related Forum: Apple Vision Pro

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Top Rated Comments

SilmarilFinder Avatar
2 weeks ago
More employees worked on that device than it’s customers.
Score: 38 Votes (Like | Disagree)
vegetassj4 Avatar
2 weeks ago
There go my hopes for the Vision Pro Max



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Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Hajj.david Avatar
2 weeks ago

No there's not. It's been meant to be the next big thing since 2014 and it's never been a thing apart from an ultra niche audience, regardless of the dozens of major brands making these and improving the technology over the last decade. 99% of people do not want to be closed off the rest of the world like that and wearing a heavy bulky headset with poor battery life. One day if they're able to squeeze that technology into normal-sized glasses with AR technology (and not the AR Meta one, also still too bulky) then maybe a wider audience will be interested.
As someone who uses the AVP for 10+ hours a day I will make the following observations:
1. Sometimes (daily) you DO want to be closed off from the rest of the world, whether you are at work, or writing up a book, or just want some quiet game time. Nobody wants to be constantly interrupted in those spheres.
2. The headset loses its bulk with the newer and other 3rd party head straps that very evenly distribute the weight.
3. The battery is irrelevant since its always plugged in

Which leads me to my next point:
Apple should have absolutely made a stripped down version that directly connects with your mac / power and have no or extremely minimal battery (like 5-10 minutes just enough to switch devices without shutting down). Remove the front eyesight thing, perhaps use plastic instead of metal (excuse me polycarbonate per Apple language lol) and it would have solved all of the issues people complain about despite never using it, especially the price.


Apple Vision apologists say that Apple never intended it to be a mainstream product, but rather a niche device. I never bought into that logic, Apple spent over ten years developing this hardware, poured endless money into R&D, and even revamped their entire Apple Store layout for it. You don't make those kinds of investments just to launch a "niche product," especially when you market it as the next big thing using buzzwords like "spatial computing."
It was never meant to be a mainstream product. It is extremely obvious to anyone with minimal deduction that they have been developing this thing for over 20 years and didn't know what to do with it. Rather than throw it all out, why not release it and see where it sticks. For example there has been a huge shift from Apple to cater very strongly to enterprise for the headset because they realize that this is primarily being used as a productivity device.

It is without a doubt the best spatial computing device. Nothing comes close to it and as I mentioned above I use it 10+ hours a day to run my business and we use custom apps to do so.


Just give up on the Vision Pro, it’s not a good product…
Its the best product in its class.


It seems that Ternus has his head screwed on right! This was a bad investment from the start. There should absolutely be a team for AR/VR R&D, but we all knew VR headsets is not ready for mass market. Nobody who isn't wearing face gear (pilots, doctors...) want a helmet when they work.
I didnt even wear glasses before I got my M5 AVP. Its very comfortable one you get the right setup to me it just feels like wearing slightly thick sun glasses.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Dirk Pieters Avatar
2 weeks ago
I think visionOS was a great investment in software.

The Vision Pro hardware was always going to be a tough sale at that size, weight and price.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
wanha Avatar
2 weeks ago
I question the mass market appeal of such things, as most people hate the idea of someone using smart glasses while interacting with them or even people wearing them around them.

However, for certain niches - cyclists, pilots, surgeons, builders, etc - these could be extremely useful.

But as long as companies think they are going to actually find a mass market for smart glasses in social environments, they're kidding themselves.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Leobreaker Avatar
2 weeks ago
I don’t think a new CEO wants “perv glasses” on his first year review meeting.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)