Facebook is developing its own OS for its AR and VR devices

Facebook is in the process of developing its very own operating system, that could eventually decrease its dependence on Android, as reported in an article in The Information. Facebook has brought in Mark Lucovsky, co-author of Microsoft’s Windown NT OS to lead the development of the operating system. Currently, many of Facebook’s devices, such as the Oculus and Portal devices, utilize a reworked version of Android, and the development of its own operating system will make it independent of Android’s parent company, Google.
“We really want to make sure the next generation has space for us,” said Facebook’s head of hardware, Andrew Bosworth, while talking to The Information. “We don’t think we can trust the marketplace or competitors to ensure that’s the case. And so we’re gonna do it ourselves.”

The shift to a proprietary operating system is vital now that Facebook has started focusing on hardware devices. The company seems to be quite serious about AR (Artificial Reality) and VR (Virtual Reality) technologies with the release of devices such as the Oculus Rift. Facebook has also introduced development tools such as Spark AR Studio. Furthermore, Facebook is reportedly working on project “Orion”, augmented reality glasses with a brain control interface, set to be released in 2023.

This isn’t the company’s first attempt at developing its own OS. Previously, it produced Facebook Home, a modified version of Android OS that shipped on just one HTC model in 2013. That turned out to be a huge flop, because the software’s tendency to spam the user with Facebook’s social feed. Hopefully, this time around things go better for the social media giant.