Apple's Vision Pro Layoffs Were Broader Than First Reported

[Starlifter]

Recent layoffs of Apple employees working on the Vision Pro were broader than previously thought, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.

Last month, Gurman said that Apple cut around 100 jobs from the Vision Products Group, with those cuts centered on the headset's gaming and immersive video teams. Gurman now says the layoffs also reached Vision Pro staff across the rest of the company, including people working on device security, audio engineering, Siri integration, testing, and visionOS. The cuts follow the June departure of Paul Meade, the executive who ran Apple's Vision Pro and smart glasses division, who left Apple for OpenAI.

Gurman reports that people inside the Vision Pro group have spent months lobbying new CEO John Ternus to stay the course on the platform even as sales continue to underwhelm. Colleagues who have discussed the headset with Ternus say he was skeptical of it from the start, seeing it as too bulky and too costly to reach a mass audience.

Interestingly, since visionOS apparently runs on Apple's upcoming smart glasses, the wider layoffs impact software shared across both product lines rather than the headset alone. Ternus is still said to support Apple's smart glasses project, code named N50, which remain on track for launch next year, but Gurman says he would consider walking away from head worn devices as a category altogether if they never catch on with buyers. That willingness also could weigh on the overhauled Vision Pro successor, code named N224, which is not expected before the end of 2028.

Article Link: Apple's Vision Pro Layoffs Were Broader Than First Reported

I was always going to wait for V3 from the beginning, as that is usually when Apple products figure out the market. However, because of this decision, I have bought VP v2. If it never improves beyond what it is now, I'm just fine. But ditched products do tend to increase in value over time because of scarcity. We'll see. Mine gets delivered tomorrow.

I will add this: privacy has long been dead. What is left is the illusion, and younger generations won't be bothered by the lack of it.

 

[Dirk Pieters]

Apple at the last minute changed the name from Vision to "Vision Pro". Zeiss who makes their optics said they couldnt make more than 500k a year. This was never going to be a mass market product period.


View attachment 2657503

Just ... don't!! 😂😂😂😂

 

[mrmod]

apple leadership is a 100% to blame for the failure of the vision pro. i haven't seen a company nuke a product so bad in a long time

 

[Dirk Pieters]

AVP will be a paperweight once Apple cuts off the support soon. It will be like anyone still driving a Prius in 2026. Even Ternus knows the product is crap.

Yet here we are, on the streets, watching people drive their Priuses. 😁

 

[Rogifan]

I think Apple misidentified their target audience. Ternus' skepticism is right. They should have marketed this thing to professionals in industries and enterprises and not the regular consumer. People pay a premium for Apple stuff, but not that kind of premium. The price hikes of a couple hundred dollars is hard to swallow, so what made them think the average person will spend $3500 on a first-gen product like this, at this price point?

If they did that nobody would have talked about it. See: Microsoft HoloLens. Tim Cook doesn’t get a Vanity Fair cover story for a product marketed to enterprise. At the same time, you’re right, that’s who a product like this would be for. But selling to enterprise isn’t really Apple’s DNA. Their biggest selling enterprise products are also widely successful consumer products.

 

[AnotherOpinion]

I bought the M5 Apple Vision Pro when it came out and I absolutely love it. I use it every day sometimes for work with the multiple screen functionality with one of my Macs. I really like it to watch TV shows and movies. Apple really is not thinking smartly about this. They've created the absolute best headset that I have ever seen or used.

— Remove the front facing display - that did absolutely nothing for the main user. Most of us are not wearing this while walking our dogs or interacting with a group of people.

— even though Apple says that it's costly, they need to create more environments and also more spatial video. It blows anything from YouTube out of the water. The quality is incredible.

— lower the price by at least $1000. Perhaps adopt the video game console business model where the hardware is not a huge profit margin, but it's what is sold through the hardware.

— since this is a pro product, they need to have content creation apps. Default built-in capabilities of creating three dimensional environment, environments, and 3-D objects. Not depend depending on third-party app developers. They need a smart way of scanning an object and then using that as a 3-D model. This headset has so much potential, but they really failed at creating the tools that will really benefit from its hardware.

If they could sell this for $2500 it would sell and be a stronger product for them. The Glasses and AVP are 2 different types of users

 

[trafficdistro54]

Yet here we are, on the streets, watching people drive their Priuses. 😁

Prius sales in 2026 have plummeted into the same dumpster fire like the AVP.

 

[Hajj.david]

I was always going to wait for V3 from the beginning, as that is usually when Apple products figure out the market. However, because of this decision, I have bought VP v2. If it never improves beyond what it is now, I'm just fine. But ditched products do tend to increase in value over time because of scarcity. We'll see. Mine gets delivered tomorrow.

Some advice:
1. It may take a few days to get fully comfortable, adjustment and fitment is extremely important. If you are feeling off then it needs to be adjusted. Specifically you should feel no or minimal weight in the front. Pull down the back strap and tighten the top strap to lift it off the front of your face.

2. When setting up your persona do your hair, wear nice clothing etc because that will always be what your persona is until/unless you reset it so look nice!

3. 90% of the time I use it WITHOUT the light seal. It makes it much more comfortable to use because you get a much wider FOV (around 109 degrees), you no longer lose your peripheral vision, you can easily rub your eyes or scratch your eye brows without lifting it up and leaving the immersive environment. If you do this I strongly suggest getting the Annapro A2 head strap for the AVP 2 from amazon or whatever, it will allow you to work all day in comfort without the light seal. You can get away with using Apples default strap but without the light seal after a few hours it will put pressure on your nose.

I always use the light seal if I am just watching movies or shows in bed with my wife while she watches tiktok or whatever social media crap.

Feel free to PM me if you have questions!

 

[Hajj.david]

I bought the M5 Apple Vision Pro when it came out and I absolutely love it. I use it every day sometimes for work with the multiple screen functionality with one of my Macs. I really like it to watch TV shows and movies. Apple really is not thinking smartly about this. They've created the absolute best headset that I have ever seen or used.

— Remove the front facing display - that did absolutely nothing for the main user. Most of us are not wearing this while walking our dogs or interacting with a group of people.

— even though Apple says that it's costly, they need to create more environments and also more spatial video. It blows anything from YouTube out of the water. The quality is incredible.

— lower the price by at least $1000. Perhaps adopt the video game console business model where the hardware is not a huge profit margin, but it's what is sold through the hardware.

— since this is a pro product, they need to have content creation apps. Default built-in capabilities of creating three dimensional environment, environments, and 3-D objects. Not depend depending on third-party app developers. They need a smart way of scanning an object and then using that as a 3-D model. This headset has so much potential, but they really failed at creating the tools that will really benefit from its hardware.

If they could sell this for $2500 it would sell and be a stronger product for them. The Glasses and AVP are 2 different types of users

Strong agree on the last sentence. Make the glasses the Vision, and the "goggles" the AVP. I also wish Apple allowed users to make environments and maybe sell it on the app store. Win, win, win for apple, users, and developers.

 

[emulator]

It's the best product in its class.

Honestly, how many other products are in its class?

apple leadership is a 100% to blame for the failure of the vision pro. i haven't seen a company nuke a product so bad in a long time

For me, the HP Touchpad tops that list. Forever.

 

[frou]

There go my hopes for the Vision Pro Max

View attachment 2657494

Vision Pro is a Halloween costume where the theme is "world's worst hangover"

 

[Spinarelo]

As someone who uses the AVP for 10+ hours a day I will make the following observations:
1. Sometimes (daily) you DO want to be closed off from the rest of the world, whether you are at work, or writing up a book, or just want some quiet game time. Nobody wants to be constantly interrupted in those spheres.
2. The headset loses its bulk with the newer and other 3rd party head straps that very evenly distribute the weight.
3. The battery is irrelevant since its always plugged in

Which leads me to my next point:
Apple should have absolutely made a stripped down version that directly connects with your mac / power and have no or extremely minimal battery (like 5-10 minutes just enough to switch devices without shutting down). Remove the front eyesight thing, perhaps use plastic instead of metal (excuse me polycarbonate per Apple language lol) and it would have solved all of the issues people complain about despite never using it, especially the price.


It was never meant to be a mainstream product. It is extremely obvious to anyone with minimal deduction that they have been developing this thing for over 20 years and didn't know what to do with it. Rather than throw it all out, why not release it and see where it sticks. For example there has been a huge shift from Apple to cater very strongly to enterprise for the headset because they realize that this is primarily being used as a productivity device.

It is without a doubt the best spatial computing device. Nothing comes close to it and as I mentioned above I use it 10+ hours a day to run my business and we use custom apps to do so.


Its the best product in its class.


I didnt even wear glasses before I got my M5 AVP. Its very comfortable one you get the right setup to me it just feels like wearing slightly thick sun glasses.

There’s no doubt that it’s an incredible device that’s well made, and far and away the best spatial computing device like you mentioned. The problem comes in with your point about it not being a mainstream device. It’s great that you have a use for it to make a living, but you’re a unicorn in that regard…. Most people who can justify the price tag probably have very little use for it. Apple is not a niche manufacturer like for example a company who makes machines for hospitals or for labs, etc…. Their business model is to get devices in to as many hands as possible….. so you can see how the AVP doesn’t really fit, unless they dramatically lowered the price, make a stripped down version that’s much cheaper…. Outside of that in its current iteration, it’s dead in the water and a drag on the companies resources and profitability.

 

[Hajj.david]

Honestly, how many other products are in its class?

Meta, Sony, Microsoft, HTC, and a bunch of other small companies have AR/VR headsets. Some new ones include pure USB pass through for virtual displays

 

[Starlifter]

Bro ur addicted to it… I don’t wanna be addicted to it…

I see AVP and I wonder what DARPA has developed.

 

[ralph_sws]

Vision Pro layoffs are spreading, and after Apple’s insane price hikes I wouldn’t be surprised if other divisions are next. Keep pricing Macs, iPads and iPhones out of ordinary people’s reach and soon Apple will have brilliant products with nobody left able to afford them.

 

[Steve Adams]

There go my hopes for the Vision Pro Max

View attachment 2657494

That's ok, he's green lighting the Apple Glasses Ultra next year.....

 

[emulator]

I feel like I am getting a stroke trying to read this, what are you saying man lol

Maybe they've been referring to this: https://www.macrumors.com/2026/08/27/pikachu-apple-park-cook-ternus/

 

[Starlifter]

Some advice:
1. It may take a few days to get fully comfortable, adjustment and fitment is extremely important. If you are feeling off then it needs to be adjusted. Specifically you should feel no or minimal weight in the front. Pull down the back strap and tighten the top strap to lift it off the front of your face.

2. When setting up your persona do your hair, wear nice clothing etc because that will always be what your persona is until/unless you reset it so look nice!

3. 90% of the time I use it WITHOUT the light seal. It makes it much more comfortable to use because you get a much wider FOV (around 109 degrees), you no longer lose your peripheral vision, you can easily rub your eyes or scratch your eye brows without lifting it up and leaving the immersive environment. If you do this I strongly suggest getting the Annapro A2 head strap for the AVP 2 from amazon or whatever, it will allow you to work all day in comfort without the light seal. You can get away with using Apples default strap but without the light seal after a few hours it will put pressure on your nose.

I always use the light seal if I am just watching movies or shows in bed with my wife while she watches tiktok or whatever social media crap.

Feel free to PM me if you have questions!

I ordered V2 from Apple, plus extra batteries, Logitech Muse, etc. I have a very nice theater setup with85" plus a 75" in my bedroom, but AVP will be good everywhere else. Part of the decision is because I want some good spatial videos of my dog before she ages too much. Thanks for the tips.

 

[vegetassj4]

That's ok, he's green lighting the Apple Glasses Ultra next year.....

I'm Tim Apple, and I approve this message

 

[dynamojoe]

The entire project needs to be shuttered, the employees fired, their memories wiped, and any blueprints for the device burned so that it may never surface again.

Naah, keep the patents and enforce them so no one else can use them either.

I’d love to have one of these things just to mess around with, but they’re well out of my “fun money” range.

 

[Steve Adams]

I'm Tim Apple, and I approve this message

View attachment 2657515

Tim's only wearing the regular Apple Glasses. Not the Ultra model.

 

[PBG4 Dude]

I ordered V2 from Apple, plus extra batteries, Logitech Muse, etc. I have a very nice theater setup with85" plus a 75" in my bedroom, but AVP will be good everywhere else. Part of the decision is because I want some good spatial videos of my dog before she ages too much. Thanks for the tips.

My dog passed earlier this year and spatial images / videos of him definitely hit different than regular pictures/video.

 

[Steve Adams]

Naah, keep the patents and enforce them so no one else can use them either.

I’d love to have one of these things just to mess around with, but they’re well out of my “fun money” range.

Just get the Meta quest 3. What patents besides the stupid front screen showing a dopey drowsey version of the eyes eyes of the wearer? Everything else has already been done.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

The biggest disadvantages of Vision Pro were its comically high price tag and the fact it requires the user to attach it to their face lol. I remember people on here suggesting it was going to replace the computer and in years to come, and we'd all be wearing these at work! Can you imagine women walking around with smeared makeup and people complaining of headaches and dizziness? haha!!

VR/AR tech has always been niche and I would be very interested to learn what Apple expected when they launched it.

 

[turbineseaplane]

The biggest disadvantages of Vision Pro were its comically high price tag and the fact it requires the user to attach it to their face lol. I remember people on here suggesting it was going to replace the computer and in years to come, and we'd all be wearing these at work! Can you imagine women walking around with smeared makeup and people complaining of headaches and dizziness? haha!!

VR/AR tech has always been niche and I would be very interested to learn what Apple expected when they launched it.

I honestly kinda wonder how many women they had working on the product overall.

If I had to guess, I'd say "not enough".