Google’s Recruitment of HTC XR Talent Sparks Speculation on HTC’s Future Plans

Google has recently made a significant move by bringing a number of HTC’s XR engineers on board. This step is anticipated to give a major boost to the development of the Android XR platform across the diverse range of headsets and glasses that are part of this ecosystem.

Just last month, Google unveiled Android XR, signaling a notable shift in the competitive landscape of extended reality (XR). Samsung seems poised to be the first to roll out a headset utilizing Android XR, stirring excitement as familiar brands return to the consumer XR arena. However, this excitement is tinged with caution due to Google’s past inconsistency in supporting long-term projects.

While Google has addressed some of these concerns in an exclusive piece with Road to VR, which offers more in-depth insights, there’s still a lingering memory of many products and services the company has abandoned over the years, including Google Daydream. This was Google’s inaugural attempt to seriously venture into the XR domain back in 2016.

In a recent announcement, Google shared that they’ve signed a new deal with HTC to bring some of HTC’s XR engineers on board. Details about this agreement remain scarce, but it appears Google aims to leverage HTC’s hardware expertise to establish a firmer footing in the current XR marketplace.

Google expressed its vision in their announcement, stating, “We’ve been investing in XR for over a decade, and with the recent launch of the Android XR platform alongside our strategic industry partners, we’re thrilled to welcome some of the HTC VIVE engineering team to Google, pending customary closing conditions. They bring a strong technical prowess with proven VR expertise, and we’re eager to collaborate with them to speed up Android XR platform development across the headsets and glasses ecosystem.”

Interestingly, this isn’t Google’s first financial foray into acquiring HTC talent. Back in 2017, Google spent a hefty $1.1 billion to snag HTC’s smartphone engineering team. Just a year later, HTC decided to combine its smartphone and VR departments, signaling a renewed focus on its XR aspirations.

As HTC residents in Taoyuan, Taiwan, primarily focus on creating XR headsets for businesses and prosumers—including their latest Vive Focus Vision, a standalone mixed reality headset priced at $1,000, fusing elements from the Vive Focus 3 (2021) and Vive Elite XR (2023)—the finer details of this new arrangement with Google remain under wraps.

HTC has occasionally ventured into non-XR territory lately, though with limited enduring impact. For instance, they launched the HTC Exodus 1 in 2018, a crypto-phone which saw a successor the following year. Likewise, in 2019, HTC released an at-home 5G hub during the early excitement of 5G technology, but none of these products remain in HTC’s current lineup. For now, all eyes are on what future developments HTC has in store.