XR Developer News - April 2026
As we're approaching tech conference season, lots of interesting content was released by the developer relations team of the various XR platforms. Meta's GDC content was published, Pico pushed out a bunch of videos and Snap overhauled its Spectacles github presence. Read on for all the details!
Meta
- Horizon OS v2.3 was released.
- Meta released the full playlist of its talks at GDC last month, including Chris Pruett's talk on the state of the ecosystem. As we're in a bit of a slow period with regards to Quest, after the Quest 3/3S peak, and waiting for what's to come in 2027, it's maybe a bit less interesting than other years, but it still gives some good insights into Meta's internal strategic thinking.
- If you're still using Meta's OculusXR package in Unity, now is the time to switch.
- Dilmer Valecillos gave a very solid talk on the AI tooling available if you're building for Meta Quest in Unity, as part of the XRCC hackathon video lectures series. Worth checking out to understand the latest state of thing.
- If you're into vibe coding a quick XR experience on the web, you might want to try out Meta's tooling for that as well. Antony Vitillo tried it out, admittedly with mixed results.
Accelerate VR Development with AI & Immersive Web SDK
Just describe your VR experience. An AI assistant builds, tests, and validates it for you, so you can focus entirely on creative vision and unique gameplay.
- In the background, Meta keeps chugging along improving its glasses support, both the OS features and the developer tooling (v0.6 of the Wearables Device Access Toolkit was released for iOS and Android), and shared some examples of what's being built by developers.
Meta Glasses Getting Nutrition Tracking, WhatsApp Summaries, Display Recording & More
Meta announced a swathe of features coming to its smart glasses, including nutrition tracking, WhatsApp summaries, display recording, more translation languages, and expanded navigation.
David Heaney
Snap
- Lens Studio v5.20 was released and the github repository with Spectacles/Specs samples and developer tooling got a substantial overhaul.
- Snap published a deep dive on its Supabase-powered Snap Cloud functionality.
Snap Cloud: A Backend for Spectacles, Powered by Supabase
- If you're trying to get up and running building for Snap Spectacles in quick time, check out this new video by Snap's Alessio Grancini.
- If you're looking to do something with Camera Kit on the web and work in React, Snap now has you covered.
Other
- Android XR received an update with various new OS-level features and now supports enterprise APIs for integration into Mobile Device Management solutions.
5 new features for Android XR
Android XR adds spatial conversion for 2D apps, the ability to pin apps to your walls and more ways to watch, create, and explore.
Juston Payne
- In preparation for the reveal of Project Swan, Pico has been on a bit of an offensive with its developer relations team, creating a lot of content on developing for Pico headsets. There was a talk at GDC, one at XRCC, and several on its own youtube channel.
- Niantic published an overview of the recent major overhaul of its Scaniverse and VPS technology.
Mapping the World For Machines with Scaniverse | Niantic Spatial, Inc.
Niantic Spatial is bridging the gap between digital models and the physical world with the launch of Scaniverse, a platform that enables precise 3D mapping and “machine-readable” spatial intelligence. By combining high-fidelity Gaussian splats with VPS 2.0, the system provides centimeter-accurate localization that functions even in GPS-denied environments. This foundational technology allows robotics, construction teams, and AI developers to navigate, reconstruct, and interact with complex physical spaces at a global scale.
- Reality Hack will be organising a hackathon around AWE USA.
Reality Hack at AWE 2026. Sponsored by Snap AR. - Reality Hack at MIT | The Experiential Technology Ecosystem
Reality Hack, Snap AR, and AWE is inviting you to build the future of human potential with Spatial AI and Extended Reality and create experiences that empower people by blending intelligent digital assistance with the physical world.
- If you're trying to figure out which OpenXR features are supported in the specific tech stack you use, Khronos Group has you covered.
Khronos Adds Middleware Insights to the OpenXR Extension Matrix
The Khronos OpenXR working group has expanded its Extension Matrix to include self-reported data from middleware providers. Developers now have a clearer view of what’s available across the broader XR stack.
Frederic Plourde, XR Lead at Collabora and Khronos OpenXR Outreach Officer
- I mentioned a few videos from the XRCC hackathon lecture series already, and it might be interesting to check them all out. I found the one about spatial audio nice, as it gives a good overview of the various options you have in that field.
Upcoming XR events
- April 30, 2026 - XR Creator Con online hackathon submission deadline.
- May 19-20, 2026 - Google I/O in Mountain View, California.
- June 8-12, 2026 - Apple's WWDC in Cupertino, California.
- June 15-18, 2026 - AWE USA in Long Beach, California.
- June 23-25, 2026 - Immersive Tech Week in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
- June 30th - July 3rd, 2026 - XR Creator Con on-site hackathon and conference in Berlin, Germany.
- December 7-9, 2026 - UnitedXR Europe in Brussels, Belgium.
A bit about this newsletter
Each month I try to round up all the interesting developments in the XR developer landscape. New hardware and software releases, events, tooling, etc. Feel free to reach out to me on LinkedIn, for instance if I missed anything which definitely should be in this monthly round up next time. Want to know more? Check out the about page.
And if you need expertise in the XR space, know that we offer exactly that at DNA.inc where I'm Head of XR, so don't hesitate to get in touch!
