Zuckerberg to meet LG CEO for XR headset development

Mark Zuckerberg, chief executive of US tech giant Meta Platforms Inc., will meet LG Electronics Inc. CEO Cho Joo-wan in Seoul around Feb. 28 to discuss co-development and launch of an extended reality (XR) headset, industry sources said on Sunday.

The main reason for Zuckerberg’s first visit to South Korea in 10 years is discussions with LG on XR headsets: the two companies are set to announce their partnership on joint development of the device, industry sources said.

They plan to release the XR headset in the first half of 2025 and outdo Apple Inc.’s latest mixed reality (MR) headset Vision Pro in terms of performance. LG and Meta will leverage their hardware technology and AI expertise, respectively, for the upcoming product, the sources added.
 
The XR sector encapsulates virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR). XR device users can experience 3-D virtual worlds for virtual meetings and live translated captions of foreign languages. 

LG'S OS FOR THE META HEADSET

Zuckerberg and Cho will also discuss application of LG’s smart device operating system (OS) to the XR headset as well as using Meta’s AI services for LG’s home appliances.

LG has asked Meta to use LG's OS for the XR headset, according to sources. The OS, set to generate more than a 1 trillion won ($750.5 million) in advertising revenue from app developers, provides games, language education and news content. 

If LG's OS is embedded within Meta's XR headset, OS sales are expected to rise considerably.

The two firms will also discuss using on-device AI for the headset. On-device AI allows smart devices to collect and analyze data without needing a remote cloud server. This, in turn, will improve device performance.  

POSSIBLE ADVANTAGES

LG is looking to secure big data on global consumers in their teens and 20s through the partnership with Meta as youngsters are forecast to be the core users of the XR headset, sources said.

Having big data on global users will be highly advantageous for LG's efforts to develop customized products and will strengthen the company’s cutting-edge AI tech, sources added.

LG Group affiliates such as LG Display Co. and LG Innotek are also expected to supply their products to the XR headset.

LG Display is developing micro-organic light-emitting diode (OLEDoS) technology, while LG Innotek Co., a camera module maker, is pushing its premium lens manufacturing.

LG Innotek said last month it has acquired shares of AOE Optronics Co., an automotive lens-making subsidiary of Taiwan-based Asia Optical, to consolidate its leadership in the global vehicle and XR camera module markets.  

Meta holds about 49% of the virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) headset market, but other global big techs such as Apple and Sony pose challenges with their devices. Samsung Electronics Co. also aims to launch its first XR headset this year in partnership with Google LLC and Qualcomm Technologies Inc. 

The global XR device market is forecast to grow to $35.7 billion by 2026, with the XR headset sector dominated by three players: Apple, the Meta-LG alliance and the Samsung-Google-Qualcomm alliances, an industry source said.

The fierce competition in the XR headset market will resemble that of the early smartphone industry, the source added.

Write to Jeong-Soo Hwang, Eui-Myung Park and Ye-Rin Choi at hjs@hankyung.com
Jihyun Kim edited this article.