Just a week before the next Worldwide Developer Conference, a trademark for "realityOS" was discovered. This filing could mean that Apple will unveil its own VR and AR platform at WWDC 2022.
Rumour has it that Apple has been working on a VR/AR headset for some time now, which will be equipped with its own operating system. In a trademark registration, discovered on Sunday, it seems that the device's software is becoming more and more real. Parker Ortolani has Twitter shared a trademark application for "realityOS," which relates to "wearable computing hardware" and a variety of other areas of computing. Although Apple does not appear directly as the trademark owner, there are a number of indications that suggest it is an Apple trademark.
Apple secures rights to realityOS
For one thing, the filing dates are suspiciously close to WWDC, with one case listing a "Foreign Filing Date" of June 8, a deadline that is two days after the developer conference's keynote. Ortolani notes that Apple typically files trademarks for products announced at WWDC a day or two after the keynote, which is "a great coincidence." The two filings also occurred on December 8, 2021, two months before direct references to "realityOS" appeared in Apple's code. Both filings were made by "Realityo Systems LLC," which was registered in the state of Delaware on December 3, 2021 through the Corporation Trust Company, which provides "Registered Agent Services." The company's registered office is, incidentally, the same address that Apple has used in recent years to secure the names of macOS California versions prior to launch.
Apple has a weakness for shell companies
Aside from the registration and trademark filing, no information about the company's products can be found. Apple's culture of secrecy goes so far that the company goes to great lengths to hide upcoming products before their official launch - this also applies to the corresponding trademarks. The company usually uses shell companies to hide its registrations, which is still the case today. Details about a proprietary operating system for the headset were first documented in 2017. At the time, it was reported that the Apple headset would have its own display and processor, as well as a new operating system.
Will rOS be announced at WWDC 2022?
The software was originally called "rOS". After claiming in May that Apple's mixed reality headset had reached an "advanced" stage of development, the trademark application is another indication that it could soon hit the market. While there is a possibility that Apple will use WWDC to introduce the headset to developers in order to encourage app development before the market launch, please remember that it is not Apple's only AR project. ARKit has been around for a few years and offers a way to use augmented reality on the iPhone or iPad. So Apple could also start here. (Image: Rendersbyjan)
