Meta Quest 3 News & Reviews

Meta’s New AI-Powered VR Toolkit Lets Anyone Build WebXR Experiences Without Coding

May 11, 2026 From roadtovr

Meta announced a major update to its open-source Immersive Web SDK (IWSDK) framework, which lets developers build VR experiences on the web using WebXR—now including an “agentic workflow” powered by AI coding assistants which aims to reduce

Originally launched at Meta Connect last year, IWSDK aimed to simplify VR development tasks like physics, hand-tracking, movement, grab interactions, and spatial UI, something Meta says allows creators can focus on ideas instead of low-level engineering.

The new addition, which Meta announced in a developer blog post, now includes an “agentic workflow” powered by AI coding assistants such as Claude Code, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, and Codex.

“In practice, agentic workflows mean the AI does more than generate code; it also tests and validates it. This closed-loop system is essential for high-quality, reliable results. IWSDK’s AI integration closes this loop entirely, offering developers maximum productivity,” Meta says.

To demonstrate the system, Meta rebuilt its 2022 VR gardening demo ‘Project Flowerbed‘, previously made up of tens of thousands of lines of custom code. Using IWSDK’s AI workflow and existing art assets, the entire application was recreated in only 15 hours, the company says, noting the tool isn’t about “fixing a typo or generating boilerplate. It’s a full, interactive VR experience for web, rebuilt by AI using IWSDK.”

Meta’s main reasoning behind its latest (and certainly not last) injection of AI is mainly centered around ease of deployment. Web-based VR can be tested instantly in a browser without lengthy compile times, and can also be deployed across desktop and VR headsets via a simple URL, bypassing app stores and downloads. Notably, the company says over one million monthly users already access WebXR content on Quest.

If you’re looking to learn more, or explore Meta’s new AI workflow, check out IWSDK here. You can also find the open-source project (under MIT licensing) over on GitHub.

SlimeVR Launches Crowdfunding Campaign for Thinner & Lighter Full-Body Trackers

February 17, 2026 From roadtovr

SlimeVR has launched its next crowdfunding campaign, this time looking to get backers excited about its next-gen ‘Butterfly’ body trackers, which promise to be thinner, lighter, and offer a longer-lasting battery.

SlimeVR’s crowdfunding campaign for the new Butterfly Trackers quickly crossed its $180,000 funding goal when it went live on February 9th, now sitting at over $347,000 from nearly 760 backers.

Much like the original SlimeVR Full-Body Tracker, which attracted more than $9 million in 2021, the IMU-based body tracking solution lets VR users better articulate their avatars without the need of base stations or external sensors of any type. It’s also handy for things like motion capture and VTubing.

That said, Butterfly Trackers are built using the same tracking technology and the ICM-45686 IMU chip by TDK as the original, something SlimeVR notes also includes the same long drift reset times and tracking quality.

The key innovation however is the inclusion of a custom 2.4 GHz dongle instead of Wi-Fi, which essentially allows the trackers to be smaller, lighter, and have a longer battery life. SlimeVR estimates each tracker can last up to 48 hours on a single charge, which is more than double its original Full-Body Trackers.

And because they’re so thin and light, this also includes a few new methods of attachment, including directly via straps, clips, and even iron-on patches.

Notably, all SlimeVR trackers are compatible with standalone headsets, including Meta Quest, Pico, or Steam Frame, as well as any headset that uses SteamVR.

The campaign’s lowest backer tier is the ‘Core Set Bundle’, which includes six Butterfly Trackers for $279, which are estimated to ship by Aug 31st, 2026. SlimeVR says the six-unit bundle is enough to track the position and rotation of your hip, knees, and chest, as well as the position (re: not rotation) of your feet.

You can check out the full specs list and additional funding tiers over on the SlimeVR Butterfly Tracker Crowd Supply campaign, which ends March 19th.

‘Battlefield’-like VR Shooter ‘Forefront’ is Coming to PSVR 2 with Cross-Play

February 12, 2026 From roadtovr

Triangle Factory announced that its Battlefield-inspired VR shooter Forefront is finally coming to PSVR 2.

There’s no release date yet beyond the studio’s initial announcement, however Triangle Factory has confirmed that when it does, the 32-player shooter will “support cross play with other VR platforms.”

Created by the same studio behind Breachers (2023) and Hyper Dash (2021), Forefront serves up an experience that should be pretty familiar to fans of the Battlefield series.

Boasting an expansive, semi-destructible environments, 16v16 battles include the ability to pilot everything from helicopters, tanks, humvees and boats as you push objectives.

Currently, Forefront is available in early access across all other major VR headsets, including Quest, SteamVR, and Pico headsets. And it’s done very well for itself in the last three months since it launched into early access.

We’ll be keeping an eye out for official release dates, but in the meantime you can wishlist Forefront over on the PlayStation Store for PSVR 2.

Meta Aims to Double, Possibly Even Triple Smart Glasses Production This Year

January 15, 2026 From roadtovr

Meta and EssilorLuxottica are potentially set to double the expected production target for their smart glasses, according to a recent Bloomberg report.

Citing people familiar with the matter, the report maintains Meta has suggested increasing annual capacity to 20 million units by the end of 2026, as the company hopes to seize growing consumer interest in smart glasses.

Additionally, the report maintains that, provided demand is strong, capacity could exceed 30 million units. Talks are said to still be ongoing, Bloomberg says.

Ray-Ban creator EssilorLuxottica noted in February 2025 that it was ramping up production capacity to 10 million annual units by the end of 2026.

Meta Ray-Ban Display & Neural Band | Photo by Road to VR

The 10 million figure already represented a significant push past its 2 million units sold following the 2023 release of the first-gen Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses.

Currently, Meta and EssilorLuxottica offer two fundamental smart glasses types: audio-only AI centric frames, styled in both Oakley and Ray-Ban variants, and Meta Ray-Ban Display, which includes a single full-color display embedded in the right lens.

This comes amid news that Meta is pausing the international rollout of the $800 Meta Ray-Ban Display smart glasses, which was set to arrive in the UK, France, Italy and Canada sometime in early this year. The company maintains the pause was due to “unprecedented demand and limited inventory.”

Meanwhile, Meta is laying off around 10 percent of staff at its Reality Labs XR division, according to a New York Times report. The move is seen as a strategic shift, moving focus from VR and its metaverse ambitions to AI and smart glasses.

‘VRChat’ Breaks Concurrent User Record on New Year’s Eve

January 5, 2026 From roadtovr

VRChat’s head of community says the popular social VR platform set a new concurrent user record over the New Year’s Eve celebrations.

The News

As first reported by UploadVR, VRChat’s head of community ‘Tupper’ detailed concurrent user numbers as they rolled in across the various Western Hemisphere time zones during the platform’s annual 24-hour NYE celebration, making for a peak of 148,886 concurrent users during the Central Time Zone ball drop.

Here’s the full breakdown, courtesy Tupper, which includes all supported platforms:

Across the board for US TZs:

ET: 147,226

CT: 148,886

MT: 141,184

PT: 127,708

Notably, Tupper says that also Japan’s had “a strong showing,” although they declined to details the exact numbers, noting however “it did surprise me.”

Additionally, Tupper says that recent “normal weekend” numbers float around 120-125k concurrent users at peaks.

My Take

VRChat doesn’t regularly publish user figures, or user breakdowns across platforms, which is a real shame since it could be one of the best ways of telling just how well VR is doing overall during these post-holiday periods—right as a flock of new users is coming in to try the massive, free and extremely well-known social VR platform.

And yes, while I tend to call it a social VR platform, VRChat is actually much more than that nowadays, as it also undoubtedly pulls in a significant share of users across flatscreen, which include PC, Android, and iOS.

As it is, engagement doesn’t appear to be slowing down on PC, according to data obtained from SteamDB. Above, you can see the massive bump in 2018 leading up to recenrt ~75,000 concurrent users connected through the Steam version of the app. Notably, those local peaks always coincide with the holiday season.

That said, all platforms eventually plateau, although it’s difficult to say when that might be for VRChat. It’s still attracting a lot of maker talent, thanks to its flexible user-generated content platform, and is still the go-to place for a variety of Internet subcultures.

Meta Delays Puck-Tethered XR Headset to 2027, Next Quest “Large Upgrade” to Current Gen

December 10, 2025 From roadtovr

Meta may be pushing back the release of an upcoming XR headset that tethers to a pocketable compute puck. Meanwhile, the company says its next-gen Quest will be a “large upgrade” over the current generation.

The News

Meta supposedly planned to release the device, codenamed ‘Phoenix’, in the second half of 2026, which is said to include a goggle-like form factor—also slated to offload compute and battery to a puck-like unit tethered to the headset.

Now, according to internal memos obtained by Business Insider, the release timeline of Phoenix has been pushed back to the first half of 2027.

Maher Saba, VP of Reality Labs Foundation, announced the change in an internal memo released December 4th, further noting that the decision arose from a meeting with Reality Labs leaders and CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

Successive XR prototypes | Image courtesy Meta

Saba maintained that the project should be “focused on making the business sustainable and taking extra time to deliver our experiences with higher quality.”

“Based on that, many teams in RL will need to adjust their plans and timelines,” Saba added. “Extending timelines is not an opportunity for us to add more features or take on additional work.”

A separate memo from metaverse leaders Gabriel Aul and Ryan Cairns added that the release date was pushed back in order to “give us a lot more breathing room to get the details right.”

Continuing: “There’s a lot coming in hot with tight bring-up schedules and big changes to our core UX, and we won’t compromise on landing a fully polished and reliable experience,” the memo said.

Additionally, Aul and Cairns’ memo maintained the company is currently working on its next-gen Quest, which is said to focus on immersive gaming. It’s also said to represent a “large upgrade” in capabilities from current devices, and will “significantly improve unit economics.”

Meta is reportedly also planning to release what Business Insider maintains will be a new “limited edition” XR device in 2026, codenamed ‘Malibu 2’. It’s uncertain what sort of device Malibu 2 is at this time.

My Take

It’s difficult to say what the next Quest will shape up to be. Meta tends to run competing prototypes to see what fits best in the market, and may have a different strategy than anyone expects.

Here’s my current hunch: Quest 3S represents the company’s best chance to reach the low end of the market at $300 (cheaper on sale), and it may be in that position for at least another year. I don’t expect a cheap and cheerful headset from Meta for a while, even with the claim that the next Quest will “significantly improve unit economics.” Relative to what? Quest 3S? A potential Quest Pro 2? We simply don’t know.

Meta’s next real headset (not the limited edition thing) may likely be a high-end headset—think around $800 or $1,000 range—which ought to keep some hardcore Quest platform adherents on the upgrade pathway while possibly offering competition some new(ish) faces: namely Samsung Galaxy XR, Valve’s Steam Frame, and the current Apple Vision Pro M5 refresh. Okay, that’s less of a hunch, and more of a consensus from what everyone’s heard.

What is marginally more certain though is Meta doesn’t seem to be in the manufacturing stage just yet of anything, at least not according to the most recent supply chain leaks, or lack thereof, so I’d expect for a lot more hubbub midway through next year. Whatever the case, I’ve got my eye out for all of the above.