Apple Resumes Vision Pro Development Amid Internal Design Disputes
Apple is exploring four new headset concepts, including a lightweight rival to Meta, though internal disagreements have put the N224 successor project on life support.
Apple has resumed development of new Vision Pro hardware through its internal Vision Products Group after a pause to prioritize generative AI and Siri. The company is currently weighing four different concepts for future headsets, including a potential successor to the M5-based model and a more affordable, lighter version codenamed N224.
Internal conflict persists over the hardware architecture of the N224 project, which some reports describe as being on life support. Some executives advocate for an all-in-one design, while others propose offloading the battery and compute to an external puck to reduce weight, a strategy employed by Meta Platforms Incorporated. Other designs under consideration include a version that tethers to a Mac for processing.
Management of the Vision Products Group has shifted, now reporting to Chief Hardware Officer Johny Srouji rather than CEO John Ternus. Despite these internal struggles, Ternus has publicly defended the product's trajectory, comparing the current state of the Vision Pro to the early days of computers.
If the N224 successor launches, it is not expected until late 2028 or early 2029. Consequently, Apple is shifting additional focus toward displayless AI-powered smart glasses, codenamed N50, which could arrive by the end of 2027, as well as potentially camera-equipped AirPods.
