Meta will open its Meta Quest operating system to third-party hardware manufacturers, according to an announcement today. According to the announcement, Meta will start with Asus and Lenovo, which are currently developing new Meta Quest devices. The company also plans to partner with Xbox to develop a limited edition Meta Quest inspired by the Xbox console.

Meta is streamlining the way it gets apps into the Meta Horizon store from App Lab, a service that checks basic technical and content requirements, and appears to be dedicated to opening the Meta Horizon OS. They also appear to be creating a "spatial app framework" for porting apps to the OS, with the goal of allowing mobile developers to create mixed reality apps.

Meta's blog post mentions that users can access external app stores such as Xbox Game Pass and the Steam Store via Steam Link. It also "encourages" Google to add the Play Store to the Meta Horizon OS.

Speaking of Xbox, Meta is working with Xbox to create a limited edition version inspired by Microsoft's game console. The renderings show what the Xbox-inspired Quest will look like. Black with green accents, it appears that there is a gaming focus between the Xbox and the licensing agreement with Asus.

Nothing physical has been revealed by Meta, Asus, Lenovo, or Xbox. It's just an idea, but Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg offers a little hint in an Instagram video.

He suggested that different kinds of quests could be released, including Xbox-inspired ones with Game Pass and an Xbox controller. Similarly, Zuckerberg also suggested the possibility of an exercise-focused set of quests with "sweat-wicking material."

Very specifically, Zuckerberg seems interested in ensuring that the Meta Horizon OS is open. 'The phone is locked in,' he said in the video. Our goal is for the open model to define the next generation," Yuanqing Yang, CEO of Lenovo, said in the announcement." Building on our past successful partnerships, Lenovo will combine the Meta Horizon OS with our leadership and innovation in personal computing, mixed reality such as virtual screens, remote presence, content consumption, and immersive training to accelerate the adoption of new user scenarios in"

.

Meta is still promoting Metaverse, which runs on the Horizon OS. The social world is a 3D layer with avatars. We are not excited about the Metaverse. But Meta has brought it down to a 2D level that can be used on the web.

How third-party manufacturers leverage the OS can extend the reach of Horizon's Metaverse layer.