In today’s cringeworthy commentary, we have Mark Zuckerberg as Steve Ballmer. I’m not sure what Zuck was thinking, but this can’t be the response he was hoping to get. It should come as no surprise that Mark Zuckerberg, who spent billions of dollars to buy a VR headset company and get into the business himself (presumably to further Meta’s data mining business model), favors his own company’s product. It wouldn’t be surprising at all for him to respond to questions with a statement about how he sees Meta’s Quest as a better value or it was a better product for the masses. However, going on camera to claim that his is a better product is the kind of bold and ridiculous claim we haven’t seen since Steve Ballmer’s interview following the iPhone launch.
If you don’t follow the world of tech, or aren’t the CEO of a big tech company, it’s completely understandable that you don’t remember Steve Ballmer’s infamous interview. He jokingly dismisses iPhone and talks up competing products Microsoft was involved in.
Doesn’t Age Well
Bold proclamations and boisterous remarks rarely age well. Especially in the age of the internet and youtube, where Steve Ballmer’s interview will probably live on forever. Many also believed that he was driving nails into the coffin of Windows Phone.
That’s why Mark Zuckerberg as Steve Ballmer seems even more ridiculous. Ballmer’s interview was so bold and so wrong for almost the entirety of the last seventeen years. We now know he drew attention to his company’s lesser products. We know the longterm impact that had. Years later, even Steve Ballmer admitted he was wrong.
Soon after Zuck posted his video to Instagram, comments blasting him started appearing online. Just like Steve Ballmer in 2007, he got blasted for his biased and self-serving take. I think Ben Lovejoy at 9to5Mac said it well, “it does feel like the smartest thing he could have said about Vision Pro was nothing at all.”
I may be enthusiastic about Vision Pro, but I think the jury is still out. To be honest, the jury is still out about Meta’s Quest 3. Time will tell whether Apple’s new spatial computer is a hit with either developers or consumers.
Latest Posts
- Uncomfortable Creatures
- From Convenience to Concern: How Data Mining Threatens Your Privacy
- Eye Tracking: A Peek Into Where You Look
- Tunnel Vision VR360 Test
- What Is Foveated Rendering?
