Apple May Have Acquired Virtual Reality Startup 'Spaces'

Apple has purchased VR startup Spaces, according to a report from Protocol. Spaces last week announced on its website that it was shutting down its existing product.

spacesvr
The update said that it was "heading in a new direction," with no additional information provided. Protocol has been told that Apple purchased the startup, but neither Apple nor Spaces confirmed the acquisition. From the website:

Thank you to our users and partners who participated in our awesome VR video conferencing product and the many people who enjoyed our VR location-based entertainment attractions found at theme parks, theaters, and more.

Spaces, which was originally part of DreamWorks Animation, created VR experiences that could be found in Spaces locations in malls and other places across the United States. One of the VR experiences was "Terminator Salvation: Fight for the Future."

Due to the pandemic, Spaces had to shut down all of its physical VR centers, laying off many staff members. Spaces then created VR experiences for video conferencing solutions like Zoom, letting Zoom users join meetings with animated avatars.


There have been rumors indicating that Apple is working on augmented and virtual reality projects for some time, including an augmented reality headset, but it's not clear what the Spaces team will work on at Apple nor how the technology might be incorporated into Apple products in the future.

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

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Render Front Page Tech

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. iPhone 17 Pro's alleged design via Front Page Tech Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone...
iCloud General Feature Redux

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive a New Perk

Thursday March 20, 2025 12:01 am PDT by
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, Apple has a new perk for you, at no additional cost. The new perk is the ability to create invitations in the Apple Invites app for the iPhone, which launched in the App Store last month. In the Apple Invites app, iCloud+ subscribers can create invitations for any occasion, such as birthday parties, graduations, baby showers, and more. Anyone ...
iOS 18

Top 5 New Features Coming in iOS 18.4

Friday March 21, 2025 3:26 pm PDT by
We're not getting new Siri Apple Intelligence features in iOS 18.4 as expected, but the upcoming update does have quite a few new additions that will be worth upgrading for. We've rounded up the five best features to look forward to, and if you're not running the beta, you can expect to get access to these in early April. Priority Notifications If you have an iPhone or iPad that supports...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock

iOS 19 Coming in June With These New Features

Thursday March 20, 2025 2:04 pm PDT by
While the first iOS 19 beta is still more than two months away, there are already plenty of rumors about the upcoming software update. Below, we recap the key iOS 19 rumors so far. visionOS-Like Design In January, the YouTube channel Front Page Tech revealed a redesigned Camera app that is allegedly planned for iOS 19. According to Front Page Tech host Jon Prosser, the Camera app...
Generic iOS 18

Apple Seeds iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 Release Candidate With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music and More

Monday March 24, 2025 10:07 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming a week after Apple released the fourth betas. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 can be downloaded from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software Update. With iOS 18.4, Apple is adding the Priority Notifications...
airpods max 2024 colors

Don't Buy Into Apple's Hype About AirPods Max Gaining Lossless Audio

Monday March 24, 2025 4:24 pm PDT by
Apple today announced that AirPods Max with a USB-C port will be gaining support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio with a firmware update next month, alongside the release of iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, and macOS 15.4. For context, audio files are typically compressed to keep file sizes smaller. There are lossy compression standards like MP3, and Apple's own Advanced Audio Codec...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Iridescent Search

Foldable iPhone Expected to Launch Next Year, Costing Around $2,000

Monday March 24, 2025 3:43 am PDT by
Apple will launch its long-rumored foldable iPhone next year with a ~$2,000 premium price tag attached, expects well-connected Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman. Gurman's comments on Apple's launch plans for its first foldable device appeared in the Q&A section of his latest Power On newsletter. Earlier this month, the reporter said Apple's foldable iPhone could be arriving "as early as 2026,"...
iOS 19 Rounded UI Elements Light

iOS 19: What to Expect From Apple's Dramatic Design Overhaul?

Monday March 24, 2025 9:47 am PDT by
Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported that Apple is planning "one of the most dramatic software overhauls in the company's history" – an update that aims to bring iOS, iPadOS, and macOS into closer visual alignment. The redesign is said to be "loosely based" on visionOS, the software behind Apple's Vision Pro headset, and will reportedly update the look of icons, menus, apps, windows, and...

Top Rated Comments

DeepIn2U Avatar
60 months ago
Anyone remember that movie with Michael Douglas featuring a VR storage library OS back in the 80’s? This startup seems very similar to that.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mr Magoo Avatar
60 months ago

Anyone remember that movie with Michael Douglas featuring a VR storage library OS back in the 80’s? This startup seems very similar to that.
The movie was “Disclosure” and it came out 1994.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
il_teo77 Avatar
60 months ago
The idea is neat. But this overabundance of "avatars" is not for me. Everyone seems to jump on the avatar bandwagon. Why not in person? Why not "augmented reality" with the real person instead of making the world basically cartoonish? I assume in Asia avatars are a pretty big deal, though I don't understand why.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
farewelwilliams Avatar
60 months ago
Memoji VR sounds awful in a business environment.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
odedia Avatar
60 months ago
Dear god, this is so geeky.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)