Microsoft and Meta were poised to compete heavily for the future of work in the metaverse. Both companies are collaborating on how people will work and play in virtual reality. Microsoft will bring its biggest services, such as Teams, Office, and Windows, to the virtual reality headsets.
Microsoft and Meta are going to combine their strengths. Meta gets a key partner in its grand metaverse plan as Microsoft sees an opportunity to bring Teams and its other productivity experiences to a capable virtual reality headset.
In order to give people new ways to connect with each other, Microsoft is bringing a Microsoft TeamsImmersive meeting experience to Meta Quest. You can work as if you were in person.
Microsoft will adapt Meta's avatars system for Teams and Teams will get support within Meta's own workrooms. Mark Zuckerberg said during the event that people will be able to join a meeting from Workrooms. The foundation of the virtual office of the future will be the cross device, cross screen experience.
The virtual office of the future will be more than just a meeting place. Windows365 will be added to the platform for streaming full versions of Windows.
You will be able to securely stream the entire Windows experience, including all the personalized apps, content, and settings to your virtual reality device with the full power of Windows and Windows applications.
2D versions of Microsoft's Office apps are coming to Quest. It's easy to imagine Microsoft adapting them in the future if there's an appetite for virtual reality in the enterprise
It will be possible for Game Pass Ultimate subscribers to stream games on the cloud gaming service. You will be able to pick up an Xbox controller and play the games on a giant screen in a virtual reality headset.
There is a close partnership between Meta and Microsoft. This is the first big partnership since the Facebook integration in Windows Phone more than a decade ago.
Microsoft seems to be hedging its bets on the future of work in mixed reality. Microsoft has tried out Windows Mixed Reality headsets, but never made its own, and the software work was lackluster compared to more established players. Microsoft has pitched its augmented reality headset to businesses as the future of collaborative work.
There were allegations of verbal abuse and sexual harassment against the leader of the Microsoft teams that developed the HoloLens headset. Rumors suggest that Microsoft has scrapped plans for a third iteration of the augmented reality headset.
The timing of Microsoft's Meta partnership is intriguing, as the company seeks to align itself with virtual reality devices rather than the manufacturer. We are taking an approach to ensure that our software can benefit users on all their favorite devices, and that's why I'm so excited about what we're announcing today and how we're bringing together the power of many of our most popular productivity tools with the new virtual reality
There are clear signs that the metaverse is going to be a challenge to get right, as Meta now has a key ally in its bid to make the metaverse a reality. Meta has tried for years to make inroads with enterprise customers through its Workplace platform, but by partnering more closely with Microsoft Teams in virtual reality, it's a clear admission of defeat. It will be interesting to see how Microsoft brings the Mesh work for Teams to life in Meta's Quest headsets.
It is still early days for this partnership and more information will be available in the coming months. The company will discuss the future of work, security, and more at its conference in Seattle tomorrow, and you can expect to hear more about Teams.
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