Hannah Hopkins
Apr 10, 2024
Apple's Vision Pro has been the talk of the town since its launch and it has numerous strong privacy safeguards in place, including restrictions on how third-party developers can use camera data.
Citing a report, 9to5Mac reported that how Apple's concern about Vision Pro sparking a Google Glass-level privacy controversy has influenced third-party developers.
Moreover, Vision Pro developers do not have access to the device's camera feeds. However, third-party apps might ask for "surroundings data." This is based on a three-dimensional model that uses camera and LiDAR data to map the environment around user.
According to Apple’s former employees report, the tech giant has placed a heavy emphasis on Vision Pro's privacy, in order to avoid Vision Pro becoming the next Google Glass. The company wants to avoid what occurred with Google Glass, a wearable technology that sparked a massive backlash over a decade ago because the presence of a camera on the product made users uncomfortable near others who were wearing it.
These limitations, however, have limited some developers' ability to create Vision Pro programmes. Apple is one among the most active in the internet sector about the value of privacy, and it is also the most protective of its own brand.
The report provides an example from Kalani Helekunihi, an augmented reality (AR) developer who "builds apps for older adults and people with disabilities." According to Helekunihi, camera access constraints have prohibited him from delivering an eyesight Pro software that would provide "users with limited vision a description of their surroundings and act as a virtual cane that warns them when they're approaching obstacles."
