Apple Vision Pro: coming to an office near you.
Apple has largely built its success selling to individual consumers, but the tech giant is doubling down on its enterprise business, especially when it comes to its new mixed-reality headset, CEO Tim Cook said on an earnings call with investors and analysts on Thursday.
“We really concluded that we can do both,” Cook said.
The reason: a change in workplace habits that gives employees more say over which devices they use at work. “What has happened over the last several years is that employees are in a position in many companies to choose their own technology that is the best for them,” Cook said. “That is a huge advantage for Apple.”
While Mac and iPad have long benefitted from this shift, the shiny new opportunity is with Vision Pro, which launches in stores on Friday for $3,500 each, he said. The headset offers access to more than 1 million apps, of which 600 were specifically created for the device. In the call, Cook cited a “very cool merchandising app” from Walmart, along with apps that employees from unnamed companies can use when working out in the field and for controlling equipment. Nike, Vanguard, SAP, and Bloomberg were also name-checked during the call as working to bring the Vision Pro to their customers and employees.
“It’s some of the most innovative things I’ve seen come out of enterprise in a long time,” Cook said, adding “I think there will be a great opportunity for us in enterprise.”
However, he avoided any specific predictions about Vision Pro sales, to businesses or otherwise.
In the past, companies selling smart wearable technologies have often pivoted to corporate sales after slow consumer adoption. For example, Meta tried to woo businesses into adopting its Meta Quest Pro virtual reality headset in 2022 with a slew of enterprise services, including integrations with Microsoft Teams and Windows 365. But the move doesn’t appear to have made a dent. Meta’s Reality Labs division, which includes revenue from Quest Pro, posted a record quarterly operating loss on Thursday. Meanwhile, Alphabet’s smart glasses product Google Glass, and once hot augmented-reality startup Magic Leap, also pivoted in recent years to selling to corporations after sales to consumers stalled.
In its fiscal first-quarter earnings on Thursday, Apple slightly beat Wall Street’s expectations for revenue and earnings, posting $120 billion in sales, up 2% from the same time last year, reversing four straight quarters of declines. Net income was $33.9 billion, up 13% from the same period last year. However, the Greater China market—which is suffering from economic turmoil and a shift to cheaper Chinese-made phones—still presents a challenge, with sales in the region down 13% year over year.
Apple’s shares fell 3% in after-hours trading at $180.89 per share.
