TikTok’s parent company plans to enter VR space: Report

SAN GFRANCISCO: Short-video-making app TikTok's parent company ByteDance is most likely preparing to join the virtual reality (VR) space, media reports say.

According to a source close to the issue, ByteDance aims to invest "tons of money" in VR-related content, citing a report from Protocol, The Verge reported on Saturday.

Over 40 job listings have popped up for Pico, the Chinese VR headset maker ByteDance acquired last year, the report said.

Most openings are for Pico Studios' west coast-based branches in California and Washington, ranging from a head of VR game strategy to a game operation manager, the report said.

Other open positions suggest an increased focus on Pico's VR hardware, including an optical engineer and a systems design electrical engineer, it added.

The report also points to Pico's head of consumer sales listing as a potential indicator that Pico is looking to establish a presence in the US.

The job description noted that candidates will be "responsible for the sales and marketing of Pico's overall product in the US consumer market".

Pico still has a lot of growing to do, and ByteDance certainly has the bandwidth to give it the push it needs to compete with the handful of mainstream headsets offered by Meta, HTC, Valve, and PlayStation in the US.

The company's flagship all-in-one headset, the Pico Neo 3 Link, launched in Europe in May and costs 449 pounds ($472 approx).

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