Demonstration at 'Korea Excellent Products Exhibition' on the 14th
Jointly Developed with Google and Qualcomm... Equipped with Gemini AI
Gathering Information by Interacting with Gemini in Virtual Reality
Attention on Whether Samsung Can Win Over Apple-Loyal Japanese Consumers
Galaxy S25 Ultra Also on Display
On May 14, Samsung Electronics will publicly demonstrate its next flagship device, the Android extended reality (XR) headset 'Project Muhan,' for the first time. The demonstration will take place at the 'Korea Excellent Products Exhibition' held during the 'Korea Week' at the 2025 Osaka·Kansai Expo. This marks the first time the actual device will be shown in operation to the public, about two months after it was displayed at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain, in March. As a result, the likelihood that Samsung Electronics will achieve its goal of launching the XR device within this year has increased.
Samsung Electronics employees are demonstrating the company's Android extended reality (XR) headset, 'Project Muhan,' at the Samsung Electronics exhibition space set up as a popup store at the Osaka Expo exhibition hall. Photo by Kim Hyungmin
According to industry and local sources on this day, Samsung Electronics is demonstrating Project Muhan, its XR device, at the popup store for the 'Korea Excellent Products Exhibition' inside the Yumeshima exhibition hall, where the Osaka Expo is being held in Japan. Project Muhan is an XR device that Samsung is developing in collaboration with Google and Qualcomm. The device is equipped with 'Android XR,' an operating system (OS) dedicated to XR jointly developed by the three companies, as well as Google's artificial intelligence (AI) assistant 'Gemini.' Users wearing the headset can interact with Gemini in a virtual space displayed through the lenses in front of their eyes and collect necessary information. At a pre-release event held the previous day for Korean government officials, a Samsung employee wearing the XR headset explored the virtual grounds of Gyeongbokgung Palace, noticed the signboard of Geunjeongjeon Hall, and asked Gemini, "Can you read the Chinese characters on the signboard?" Gemini responded, "It says Geunjeongjeon."
With the launch of this device, Samsung Electronics is expected to enter the XR market in earnest. Once Samsung enters the market, it is likely to compete head-to-head with Apple's previously released 'Vision Pro.' The fact that the demonstration is taking place in Japan is also noteworthy, as Japan is a market with higher loyalty to Apple than to Samsung. According to the 'Japan Smartphone Sales Report' released by market research firm Counterpoint Research in March, Apple held a 49% market share in the Japanese smartphone market last year, ranking first. In contrast, Samsung's share was 6%, failing to surpass 10% for a second consecutive year in 2023. It is also well known in the industry that Japanese consumers have a lukewarm response to Galaxy phones, partly due to a sentiment that is not favorable toward Samsung's history of surpassing Sony, Japan's leading electronics company, and dominating the global electronics and smartphone markets.
Samsung appears to have chosen the Osaka Expo as the stage to win over Japanese consumers with its XR device, building on the momentum from the launch of the 'Galaxy S25 Edge,' the thinnest (5.8mm) Galaxy S series model ever, which was released the previous day. Additionally, the Galaxy S25 Ultra, which received positive responses worldwide after its release earlier this year, will also be on display at the Osaka Expo. Samsung is expected to emphasize to visitors that they can enjoy a unique experience by linking the Galaxy S25 Ultra with the XR headset Project Muhan.
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