Insider reported that Microsoft has canceled the HoloLens 3 amid low morale among its development teams, having been affected by “confusion and strategic uncertainty as different factions argue.” The uncertainty present at Mircosoft has grown over indecision on whether the company should focus on creating its hardware in-house or only develop software for other companies’ devices.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella reportedly is in favor of the company focusing solely on software. The company behind the Xbox currently has a variety of software that can profoundly push VR technology further such as the Azure Kinect, Spatial Anchors, and Mesh. Three separate sources confirmed to Insider that it’s because of this and Microsoft’s partnership with Samsung that has led to the HoloLens 3 being canceled. A decision that “inflamed divisions with the team.”
A former employee of Microsoft spoke on the matter saying, “There’s been a conscious pivot to make investments within mixed reality be financially sound.” This comes after Meta has greatly changed the market by offering consumers a quality VR experience for just $300 with its Quest 2. The company has only increased competition with its promise to “build the metaverse” as well.
While several sources have claimed the HoloLens 3 is well and truly dead, the head of Microsoft’s mixed reality teams Alex Kipman recently wrote on Twitter, “don’t believe what you read on the internet. #HoloLens is doing great and if you search said internet they also said we had canceled #HoloLens2… which last I checked we shipped with success.” Although Kipman’s post seems to refute several sources’ claims, perhaps work on the HoloLens 3 will be utilized in a future Samsung product.
The original HoloLens was released in March 2016, as a pair of mixed reality smartglasses. It was the first head-mounted display to run the Windows Mixed Reality platform under Windows 10.
Only time will tell what is come of the HoloLens 3 but it seems pretty certain that Microsoft isn’t done with their venture into VR, even if they leave the device behind.
