The Financial Times reports that Apple has hired virtual reality researcher Doug Bowman for an unspecified role. The computer science professor has served as the director of Virginia Tech's centre for human-computer interaction for five years, and has dedicated his research to VR and 3D interface design.
Bowman's move is the latest in a series of hires an acquisitions by Apple in the virtual reality field. Almost a year ago, Apple was granted a patent for a GearVR-like headset, shown to work with an iPhone and an Apple Remote. Months later, Apple purchased augmented reality startup Metaio, as well as facial capture tech firm Faceshift. Then, earlier this month, Apple acquired Emotient, a startup developing technology that reads and analyses human facial expressions.
It's unclear what Apple's plans in the VR and AR space are, but with the technology and creative minds in place, the company looks set to become a full fledged competitor in some form.
