Meta is now utilizing “combined actuality” as an umbrella time period to imply each MR and VR.
Direct affirmation of this was given earlier this month on X by Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth, and we have already began seeing this new terminology utilization throughout Meta advertising and marketing and communications.
Bosworth offered the general public clarification in response to John Carmack’s tackle his leaked memo in regards to the path of Meta Actuality Labs in 2025. Carmack significantly objected to what he learn as an overfocus on combined actuality, digital content material blended with a passthrough background. However Bosworth clarified that “MR” on this context was getting used rather than MR/VR, referring to everything of Quest and Horizon OS throughout all content material varieties.
NB: we use MR as a substitute of MR/VR now. The time period covers each for us internally.
— Boz (@boztank) February 5, 2025
The time period “digital actuality” and “VR” are actually virtually completely absent from the principle Quest part of Meta’s web site, together with each the Quest 3 and Quest 3S product pages. The one point out we might now discover is “Enter Gotham Metropolis in absolutely immersive VR” in reference to Batman: Arkham Shadow, although elsewhere the sport is marketed as “Uncover the enjoyable of combined actuality and get Batman: Arkham Shadow included together with your buy.”
In describing the capabilities of Quest headsets, Meta now appears to confer with VR as merely “immersive experiences”.
And take this latest Meta weblog put up about Quest video games. Regardless of 11 of the 12 video games talked about going down solely in absolutely immersive VR, with no passthrough, Meta titled the put up “Step Into Quest: Embrace the Marvel of Blended Actuality With These Immersive Video games”.
Look too at Meta’s terminology for builders signing up for Join 2025. You will be an AI developer, an Augmented Actuality developer, a Blended Actuality developer, or ‘Different’ – there is no choice for Digital Actuality. As a result of VR is now thought-about a subset of combined actuality by Meta.
Meta’s VP of MR/VR, Mark Rabkin, is stepping down in March attributable to household well being points. His successor hasn’t been introduced but, however given Meta’s new terminology utilization, they are going to presumably be titled VP of MR.
A number of builders have informed UploadVR they discover the brand new terminology complicated, as a result of it may make it unclear whether or not Meta is speaking about combined actuality within the umbrella time period sense or combined actuality within the sense of content material that makes use of passthrough. Quest customers too are discovering it tougher to decipher Meta’s public communications.
Some argue that Meta ought to use “XR” because the umbrella time period, however this would come with clear AR from glasses, which will probably be a separate product class from Quest and Horizon OS. Meta is searching for a time period to differentiate these, as a substitute of utilizing “VR/MR”. And, for now no less than, regardless of the confusion it might trigger, the corporate has settled on “MR”.
