Zoom unveils immersive app for Apple's Vision Pro headset

Zoom has just unveiled its video-conferencing app for Apple's Vision Pro headset expected to launch this Friday. The new experience will enable a 3D avatar of the user during the meeting that will imitate facial expressions and hand movements. The app will “seamlessly blend videoconferencing with user’s physical space,” Zoom said on Monday, “blurring the lines of in-person and remote meetings with the infinite canvas on Apple Vision Pro, helping distributed teams feel more connected and included.” Zoom has allowed for an immersive experience for users, replacing user images wearing headsets, with 'personas' or 3D avatars, which can be scaled to ideal size if users need “to feel like they’re in the same room as their colleagues and customers, without the need for additional physical equipment or setup.” Moreover, the company will allow its users to pin five participants during the meeting, anywhere in their space, eliminating their background. 3D object sharing will enable files to "come to life when seeing objects in the context of an environment. For instance, an animator or game designer could collaborate and share the latest character model via Zoom’s 3D object sharing capabilities.” Zoom's chief product officer, Smita Hashim says, “The integration of Zoom on Apple Vision Pro and visionOS extends our platform promise of allowing participants the ultimate meeting experience from anywhere and delivers on our commitment to seamless collaboration and communication.” While many apps like Netflix, Spotify and YouTube have declined to create new apps for Apple's Vision Pro headset, Zoom has stepped forward and created quite an exciting app that might take virtual meetings to the next level with an immersive and real-life experience.