Existential Questions for the Vision Pro (to save humanity)

 When that headset is on, it’s Apple’s world and you’re just living in it.

Table of Contents

1. Are certain memories meant to be lived once?
2. Who do you see in the mirror?
3. Will people become less intimate?
4. Is it bad to treat ourselves like Sims?
5. Too realistic for our own good?

The Vision Pro's steep $3,500 price tag has led many to dismiss it as merely another luxury item, but Apple has loftier goals in mind. It will become as commonplace as the iPhone is now, but at a fraction of the cost, in just five years. (Recall Tesla's strategy with the Roadster.)

It's the first headgear aimed squarely at consumers that isn't a novelty item. Unlike virtual reality, it will fundamentally alter our relationship with technological devices.

In comparison to the first generation MacBook, the Game Boy is more like the Meta Quest Pro than the Vision Pro.

Why? Anyone who has used the Vision Pro can attest to how realistic the virtual environment appears to be.

This headset is far more powerful than even Apple is letting on at the moment, when all the talk is about having a 200-inch movie screen or 6-monitor set up in your bedroom.

As it improves, the concern will be when it becomes too potent.

Let me be clear: I am not a Luddite. I'm a sucker for cutting edge gadgets. If this new type of computing were truly revolutionary, I would have expected a public reaction similar to the one we've witnessed with artificial intelligence (AI) ever before Chat GPT was first introduced.

I'd want to use this post to shed light on a few issues that I feel need greater discussion. Note that certain elements are more connected to the Metaverse or technology that is still a few years away, but the Vision Pro remains important to my thoughts.

Are certain memories meant to be lived once?

There seem to be two main camps of people who watched this scene.

Most non-parents: Cringe…take that thing off your head, dad.

Some parents: *Cries* while overcome with emotion. (Here is an example)

The idea that you can replay some of life’s most special memories is moving, but may there be a darker side to this? — I am very interested in the psychological implications of this feature for the person filming.

Sometimes, life is meant to be lived once and when you take this way, there’s something lost.

After all, the hippocampus (responsible for memory) is programmed to forget for a reason. Researchers found evidence that neural systems actively remove memories, which suggests that forgetting may be the default mode of the brain.

Surely, evolution did not come to this conclusion by mistake. While there are many theories on why this may be, (namely, to forget trauma) I wonder if the Vision Pro is threatening this genetic advantage.

While this technology seems great for certain applications, such as watching the game-winning shot at an NBA game you attended (assuming the entire simulation of the game wasn’t already downloadable), I am worried about the more intimate moments. 

While with any transformative inventions, there will always be terrible edge cases. In the case of tragedy, sentimental recordings could have a twisted effect on someone’s mind. (I’ll leave this to your imagination, so as not to be a total downer). 

After all, people record these instances in 2D, but the scary part is when a 3D recording feels so lifelike the brain can be fooled into believing it’s the real thing. 

Given the recording exists, will our brain’s ability to retain memories degenerate even faster on the premise that moments can be perfectly relived if they’re just recorded in the first place?

However, it’s important to not let these examples be disproportionately weighted to the profound effect they could have on the greater good.

And for those “non-parents” above concerned about a headset always being put in someone’s face — don’t worry, I am sure it won’t take long for there to be a handheld device to capture the same type of footage.

 

2. Who do you see in the mirror?

If you put on the Vision Pro and look into a mirror, who do you see? The image you see when you put on the headset mirrors your actual appearance? A digitised version of your face that has been superimposed? Perhaps the same depiction, but with some tweaks (more concealer, a smaller nose, and less acne)? Perhaps someone entirely different?

Although I lack training in psychology, I find the last two choices to be rather unsettling. It may initially remind you of a harmless toy, like a Snapchat filter, but I foresee it becoming a more troublesome feature after a few uses.

As more people learn they can make themselves look "better" in the Metaverse, cases of body dysmorphic disorder (an obsessive preoccupation with one's physical appearance) are expected to rise. Online culture will set a new standard for beauty that cannot be matched in the real world.

 

And you thought modern catfishing was bad...

 

The effects on mental health and the rise of headset dependency are clear. This may be on the same scale as the insecurity that prevents some people from leaving the house without makeup today. Why go out of your way to meet someone when you can just show them your "best" self online?

"In the wild, social comparison can mean the difference between life and death, so natural selection programmed the brain to react to social comparisons with life and death brain chemistry." Thanks, Graziano Breuning

People's sense of identity will be muddled as they try to make sense of their dual realities. You can act in the same manner in which you have always acted, or you can adopt an entirely new persona. Given the combination of internet anonymity and the harshness of real life, it should be fascinating to observe human behaviour. Whether they like it or not, everyone will have a different persona online.

It's up to you to decide who you are when you look in the mirror.

 

Will people become less intimate?

Picture a global population outfitted with augmented reality goggles. A lack of physicality will radically alter the nature of human relationship.

(A cerebral implant that can mimic any physical experience is likely within our technological grasp in the not-too-distant future; nonetheless, for the purposes of this discussion, let's pretend such time has not yet come. Research on this technology is few, however one example may be found here.

Bridges, connections, and touches. This is the reason why individuals embrace one another when saying hello or farewell, shaking hands after making a transaction, or posing for a photo.

The 'feel-good' hormone oxytocin is released in response to human touch because of our evolutionary predisposition to enjoy physical contact.

Why? Not counting reproduction. Although it is debatable, I believe that a group of people had a better chance of survival than an individual 200,000 years ago. There is strength in numbers, after all, and this proved especially true during the colder months. In frigid conditions, the warmth of others will not only keep you comfortable, but also alive.

Humans are social beings with a biological necessity (not a desire) for physical contact. Numerous researches confirm this.

However, the more reliant individuals get on their VR headsets, the less time they will spend engaging with one another in person. The convenience of the Metaverse will eventually win out over the human need for physical contact. The "principle of least effort" suggests that people will opt for the easiest option available.

While it may be more convenient to hold virtual meetings instead of in-person ones, doing so may have unintended consequences for your health. I'm not talking about the weekly conference call with your work, but rather a (dystopian) future in which people opt to use video conferencing software and wear headphones when they get together with loved ones for the holidays.

There is no need to pack or worry about delays due to travel. Makeup (or a complete facial makeover) and your favourite dress can be applied to your digital self in a flash.

Due to your body learning to get its serotonin fix from other sources, you may become less affectionate in person.

The patterns in which people engage with one another online will eventually seep into their offline interactions as well. We should wave more and hug less.

Is it bad to treat ourselves like Sims?

When I was younger, I was a big fan of the Sims 2. My sisters and I would take turns on the house computer, with me as the little brother usually ignored when it was finally my time to play. It’s a game where you control virtual characters and guide their lives, relationships, and aspirations in a simulated world of endless possibilities.

You play god and need to make sure each person is healthy according to a table of “Needs” Before anything else, you had to make sure everyone had their “Mood Bars” high. This was always my least favorite part of the game. I was too focused on earning money so I could build the best-designed dream home, not playing ‘House’.

Thus, I would maximize everyone’s “Needs” as efficiently as possible. When the characters were hungry, my sisters would feed each of them their ‘favorite’ foods corresponding to the proper meal. On the contrary, when I was in charge, everyone ate cereal all day, every day.

The food preparation was quick, it filled up their hunger bars quickly, and was cheap. As for the other “Needs”, I followed a similar process. In terms of the “Social” meter, everyone spoke to each other exclusively about the weather (a conversation prompt with high output) and solely watched the television (the “Fun” need) despite having a pimped out game room with a pool table, darts, and a pinball machine. (If any of my avatars resurrect into a living human and is reading this: PLEASE DO NOT SEEK REVENGE, I AM SORRY) As I reflect on my Sims days, I can’t help, but draw a lot of parallels to the real world.

We all have those same internal mood bars, just without the metered interface. Just as I hacked mood levels by leveraging the highest-output-per-unit-of-input strategy — humans are doing the same in real life every day. The term is called “bio-hacking”, even if you don’t realize it.

Here are some examples:

Pleasure: Feeling down? Don’t fret. Your next hit of dopamine is one click away! Open up TikTok because those dance videos won’t watch themselves.

Alertness: Why give your body a sufficient 8-hours of sleep when you can slurp up a caffeinated beverage and be just as awake? Anxiety: Life can be tough, but it doesn’t have to be! A few smokes or a visit to the liquor shelf can help calm the nerves.

Weight: Your days of forcing yourself to get on that treadmill are over! Drugs previously used for diabetics (like Victoza) are now the hot trend for curbing your appetite — shed those calories! You’re overriding thousands of years of evolution — taking shortcuts to fill up your mood bars. And this trend will continue to grow, gradually being written off as a “part of life”.

The virtual world is no exception and will serve to aid any deficiencies at scale. The Vision Pro is much more than a means to display virtual screens — it gives you a new reality.

I believe its name, “Vision Pro” is drastically underplaying its functionality as to underplay its influence. A more accurate name should be the “Reality Pro” because its influence is far more than what you see, rather what you feel.

Going back to your needs — let’s touch on some examples of how mixed or virtual reality may serve you. (Note: it’s not the headset alone that will accomplish these hacks, but it will enable AI/ML in a way we haven’t encountered before.)

Companionship: Feeling lonely? A lifelike avatar designed to your preferences is available at the snap of your fingers. No need to have those pesky real world friends anymore!

Stimulation: Need to escape the fast-paced chaos of everything around you? A trip into nature from the comfort of your cashmere couch may help. Best of all? No mosquitos or mud to deal with.

Physical Health: Dealing with bodily pain that requires physical therapy? Don’t bother pushing yourself through the challenging recovery stage if you can distract yourself from that discomfort with virtual reality hypnosis.

Pleasure: Watching TikTok’s on your phone of puppies will instantly boost your dopamine levels, but even more so if they’re projected on the floor in front of you. The Vision Pro will change the way we satiate our needs, but at what point does treating our bodies like Sims characters become wrong?

One end of the spectrum is living like our primal ancestors while the other is consuming a miracle drug to fulfill most of our biological needs. Sure, the latter is not ‘natural’ (in our understanding of the word today), but would it need to be? One could argue that if it makes life better and easier — who cares? With great power comes great responsibility.

For the exact reason the FDA approval process is so thorough, to help mitigate any foreseen side effects, there should be some safety protocols in place for the Vision Pro.

What limitations should be instituted to mitigate abuse?

Should children or the mentally vulnerable be allowed to use the headset?

If so, for how long or what functionalities?

Or will it be a right that everyone is entitled to free, unvetted access to these virtual experiences and/or bodily shortcuts?

Societal decisions on digital presence over the next 10 years will drastically affect the trajectory of mankind over the next 100. It’s a fine line whether we will trend toward the Axiom Humans in WALL-E or be more empowered to focus on creative work, generating new ideas.

Too realistic for our own good?

Apple's initial headset wasn't released as a 'Mixed Reality' headset by chance, just like no other aspect of an Apple product is by chance. Though they deny it (for the time being), their ultimate goal is to create hyperreal computer-generated environments that are indistinguishable from the real thing.

 

The question is not if this day will come, but when.

 

The "world's most open and advanced real-time 3D creation tool for photoreal visuals and immersive experiences" is Unreal Engine 5, which you should definitely check out if you haven't already. The state of computer graphics is now beyond my wildest dreams from even a decade ago.

Given Apple's obsession with quality control, it makes more sense to improve upon the world as we know it rather than completely change it.

The potential benefits of combining the digital and real worlds are immense, yet this new frontier is not without its risks.

Addiction: If you can get lost in a screen the size of your hand, think about how much more engrossed you'd be if it filled every pixel of your periphery (and fewer things to distract you). As an added bonus, having a computer in plain sight at all times is, well, rather helpful.

Disorientation: You may feel like you need to pinch yourself to wake up from a dream, and you may find yourself reaching for your face to see if the device is still on. I worry that this muddled thinking could become a problem for people with mental disorders with prolonged use. One such condition that might become increasingly widespread is multiple personality disorder. As was previously mentioned, persons whose real-world and online personas couldn't be more different might switch between them without even realising it.

As someone who occasionally encounters phantom vibration syndrome (the false impression that their phone is vibrating when it isn't), I can attest that this is a real problem, and I expect it to happen with Vision Pro customers as well. Even if they aren't actually using a headset, they will nonetheless make the typical error of making the same hand movements. This probably won't cause any issues, but it could be amusing anyway.

Acting on impulse can cause someone to imagine they are in a virtual realm, triggering their fight response. Because of this, I hope a film adaptation of Grand Theft Auto won't be made any time soon...

Anxiety: Repeated exposure can produce significant changes in how the brain interprets threats. Let's say someone like terrifying films that put them right in the action. Which, by the way, is not going to be me at all). Not the animated variety, but rather one that could have some basis in reality. How sensitive or desensitised to terror will your amygdala become? I'm curious to know whether people's newfound paranoia will cause them to check their closets before going to sleep or whether they will keep their cool in the face of danger.

 

Final thoughts

These times in which we find ourselves are thrilling.

These days, it's easier than ever to get your hands on a decent computer, artificial intelligence is making headlines left and right, and widespread use of the most immersive medium for human-computer interaction is just around the corner. 

When it comes to the Vision Pro, I think it will make a bigger splash than most people expect. This new range of products from Apple will be just as revolutionary as the rest of Apple's offerings, if not more so. A $3 trillion corporation can't have failed to anticipate its future success.

There are a few things to keep in mind, but I feel the greater the understanding and preparation for the consequences, the greater the overall rewards.

Personally, I can't wait for it to come out and am looking forward to doing all I can to promote its widespread use (even if I doubt I'll ever buy one).

The sum of $3,500 is quite substantial. Outside of virtual reality, augmented reality, and artificial intelligence, I would be interested in any opportunity that would allow me to continue feeding my enthusiasm for working on cutting-edge technologies. I have extensive experience in business administration, operations management, and marketing.