[Reading Science] From AI to AR, Meta's 2 Consecutive Wins... Troublesome Apple

Meta Unveils Dream Glasses 'Orion'
Strike Against Apple's Goggle-Type 'Vision Pro'
Following Open Source AI 'LLaMA'

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is seen trying on the AR glasses 'Orion' himself after unveiling them at an event held last September. Zuckerberg emphasized that Orion, combined with AI, can be called a time machine.
[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

At the end of last September, Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta (META), took the stage during the ‘Connect’ event held at Meta’s headquarters in Menlo Park, California. After introducing the new ‘Quest’ virtual reality (VR) device, he suddenly began explaining a pair of glasses.

It didn’t take long for those glasses to elicit gasps from the event attendees. Zuckerberg demonstrated the key features of Orion. When looking at a building, information was overlaid in real time, and foreign language signs were automatically translated. When looking at grocery packaging, it even showed cooking methods using those ingredients. At this point, it was not just augmented reality (AR), but the emergence of a ‘new world’ glasses combined with AI.

"Orion is not just a simple device. It is a revolution that will fundamentally change the way we see the world," Zuckerberg said. He added, "Until now, AR has been headsets, goggles, helmets, but Orion is the real world layered with holograms." Zuckerberg also said, "This glasses should be seen as a time machine."

◇ Meta’s ‘Orion’ aiming to overturn augmented reality = Taking advantage of the cooling excitement caused by the delayed AI integration in the highly anticipated Apple iPhone 16, Meta unveiled a new AR device. While Apple and Nvidia have hesitated amid the ‘AI winter’ controversy, Meta is aiming for a turnaround with its open-source AI ‘LLaMA’ followed by the AR device. Behind this is the pride competition between Apple CEO Tim Cook and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

Meta’s stock price has recently continued to hit record highs. Although Apple and Nvidia initially led the AI race, Meta has clearly gained the upper hand recently. Of course, the gap in corporate value between Apple, Nvidia, and Meta remains large. Apple and Nvidia each have market capitalizations in the $3 trillion range, while Meta stands at about $1.4 trillion, roughly half. However, the gap is steadily narrowing. Compared to Apple, Meta has lower profitability and must pay huge costs to Nvidia for AI investments.

Interestingly, while Meta continues to provoke Apple, it maintains a friendly relationship with Nvidia.

Meta, which owns killer apps like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, faces the challenge of Apple’s platform, the iPhone. Apple has already dealt a critical blow to Meta’s services before.

In the IT industry, the announcement of Orion is seen as reigniting the long-standing rivalry between Apple and Meta. The competition between Apple and Meta goes beyond simple product rivalry, representing philosophical differences about the digital future. Although Orion is a prototype with no set release date, it confirmed that Apple should be on alert.

◇ Zuckerberg continues provocations targeting Cook = Apple CEO Tim Cook has emphasized privacy and a closed ecosystem. In contrast, Zuckerberg advocates openness and connectivity. This difference is clearly reflected in their approaches to AR technology. In July, during a conversation with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, Zuckerberg even swore while mentioning Apple. Huang was surprised by this. It showed how deep Zuckerberg’s grudge against Apple is.

Especially significant is that Meta is preparing a counter product to Apple’s ambitious AI and next-generation product, Vision Pro.

The conflict between the two companies intensified in 2021 when Apple introduced the App Tracking Transparency (ATT) policy. This policy prohibits apps from tracking user data across other companies’ apps or websites without user consent.

Apple cited user privacy protection as the reason, but for companies earning massive advertising revenue through apps installed on iPhones, it was like a bolt from the blue. Meta is a prime example. Most of Meta’s revenue comes from targeted advertising, which was severely impacted by ATT. Zuckerberg strongly opposed this and Meta’s stock price plummeted. He said, "Apple is using its power to control its platform to limit competition. This harms the entire internet economy."

Cook, emphasizing privacy, explained Zuckerberg’s claims from the consumer’s perspective. He countered, "User data belongs to the user, and transparency and user control are fundamental human rights."

Now, the second war is being fought in AI. The debate over Apple’s closed approach versus Meta’s open approach has become a major issue.

Meta actively supports open-source AI models. Zuckerberg stated, "The future of AI must be open," and released its large language model (LLM) ‘LLaMA’ as open source. This was clearly aimed at Apple.

Apple focuses on developing its own AI technology and maintains a closed ecosystem. Apple installs its own small-scale LLM on the iPhone and delegates questions it cannot handle internally to OpenAI’s ChatGPT. In this process, OpenAI has become a partner supplying apps through Apple. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was not even allowed to speak on stage at an Apple event and had to sit in the audience.

In this competitive landscape, Meta is strengthening cooperation with Nvidia. Nvidia’s cutting-edge GPUs play a key role in Meta’s AI development. Meta recently placed a large order for Nvidia’s H100 GPUs. Jensen Huang, who has been enjoying a ‘bromance’ with Zuckerberg, said, "Together with Meta, we are opening a new horizon for AI. Meta’s innovative vision combined with Nvidia’s technology is making unimaginable things a reality." Huang also demonstrated Orion live to the public through videos released by Meta.

Apple does not have a cooperative relationship with Nvidia. Apple’s AI development uses Google’s TPU chips rather than Nvidia’s GPUs. The relationship between Apple and Nvidia has been strained since 2010. Naturally, Nvidia’s attention has turned to Meta. Nvidia’s support and Meta’s bold investments are hitting home runs repeatedly. Although OpenAI is a powerful market leader, the competition among big tech companies, especially between Apple and Meta, intertwined with Nvidia, signals the beginning of a triangular rivalry.