Tim Cook hinted that Apple may be interested in virtual reality

If iPhone sales are cooling down, as Tuesday’s Apple earnings showed, the pressure on the company to find additional profitable products next to its flagship revenue juggernaut will only heat up. Could it be cars? Or maybe virtual reality, the field in which Apple recently poached a key academic researcher? On the latter, Apple’s CEO Tim Cook gave a sliver of insight into how Cupertino is viewing the newfangled computing platform. An analyst on the earnings call tossed a question to Cook about new products, throwing the curveball about any “high level” thoughts on virtual reality, specifically whether it’s a “geeky niche,” as many outside (and in) tech see it. “In terms of virtual reality, no, I don’t think it’s a niche,” Cook replied. “I think it can be … it’s really cool and has some interesting applications.” Sadly, Cook didn’t get into those applications. But it’s telling enough that Cook didn’t ignore the question. Nor did he disparage the space into which Apple competitors Google and Samsung are plowing resources. So let the rampant speculation begin!