Meta’s Horizon OS Goes Open-Source: Lenovo, Microsoft, and Asus Partner with Meta to Create a More Vibrant Ecosystem for App Developers and Consumers

Meta has announced that it will be opening up its Meta Horizon OS operating system to third-party hardware manufacturers, with Lenovo, Microsoft, and Asus being the first to adopt it in their new products. The goal of this move is to provide more options to consumers and offer a broader ecosystem in which developers can build their applications.

Meta Horizon OS is the result of a decade of work by Meta to build a next-generation computing platform that is built around people, not just exclusive to its MR headsets. Asus’ gaming division Republic of Gamers (ROG) will develop MR glasses for high-performance title gaming, while Lenovo will leverage its expertise in co-designing the Oculus Rift S and engineering devices like the ThinkPad to develop MRI equipment for productivity, learning, and entertainment.

Meta is also working with Xbox to bring Xbox Cloud Gaming in beta version to its Meta Quest headset so that players can access Xbox video games on a virtual 2D screen in MR. Additionally, Meta is collaborating with Xbox to launch a limited edition of the Meta Quest helmet inspired by Microsoft’s gaming division. All devices in the new hardware ecosystem powered by Meta Horizon OS will benefit from Qualcomm Technologies’ Snapdragon chips, just like Meta Quest 3 already does with Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2.

As more original equipment manufacturers join forces with Meta, it opens up even more possibilities for app developers. App Lab titles will soon appear in a dedicated section in the online store on all devices, making them more visible to a wider audience. A new spatial applications framework is also being developed to allow developers to bring mobile applications to Meta Horizon OS or create new experiences for this operating system.