Tim Cook: Chinese app developers can succeed globally in AR in future

Tim Cook, CEO of Apple Inc, told China Daily on Monday that he has very high expectations for Chinese app developers to succeed in the era of spatial computing with the company's augmented reality device Vision Pro.

Cook said in an interview that, "We already have a group of developers working out of Shanghai (for Vision Pro). We've already seen some of the things coming out and they're going to be blow away. We're so excited about it."

Apple has a lab in Shanghai to help app developers work on applications for Vision Pro, people familiar with the matter told China Daily.

Vision Pro, unveiled in June by Apple, is the first major new product category the US company has launched in almost a decade.

Cook made the remarks in an Apple store in Chengdu, Sichuan province on Monday. This is the second trip the senior executive has made to China this year, highlighting the importance of the country to the US tech heavyweight as a crucial market, key supply chain center and an innovation engine.

According to him, Chinese app developers have the potential to repeat their global success stories on the company's visionOS platform in the future, just as how they already have done on Apple's iOS app store.

"I can't wait to see who and how they will be successful (in future)," Cook added.

The remarks show that Chinese developers are not only important to Apple's current iPhone ecosystem, but also key to the company's future innovation ecosystem of AR.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of Apple's presence in China.

At the store, Cook saw a competition of the Honor of Kings, a popular Chinese-developed game. He said: "The game sets a new bar. It is so popular in China and around the world. You can see that people are so passionate about the game and so excited. It's great to see."

Not just Apple's AR innovation ecosystem but also the production of its AR devices relies on China.

Luxshare Precision Industry, a Chinese electronics company, told China Daily earlier that it is preparing to make the Apple Vision Pro, an augmented reality headset, for Apple Inc. The new product will be available in the market early next year.

Luxshare has landed Apple's order to be the latter's contract manufacturer like Foxconn, which makes iPhones. The achievement showcases Chinese suppliers' prowess in advanced manufacturing and their important position in Apple's supply chains.