E117 - UnitedXR: The State of the Metaverse Standards Forum, Standards for AI and what about Apple? with Neil Trevett

• Thomas Riedel
• Neil Trevett

Summary

Today, we are heading to Brussels. At the premiere of UnitedXR (YouTube →), I sat down with an absolute heavyweight of the industry: Neil Trevett.

If you work in graphics, you know Neil. He is the VP of Developer Ecosystems at NVIDIA, President of the Khronos Group, and Chair of the Metaverse Standards Forum.

In this conversation, we dive deep into three key topics: First, the current state of the Metaverse Standards Forum. Second, Apple’s role in XR—and specifically the tension between the USD and glTF file formats. And finally, how standard organizations are handling the explosion of AI assets and new tech like Gaussian Splatting.

This interview is essential listening if you want to understand the strategic side of XR and how to navigate the competing narratives in our industry.

Exposé+

1. Reorganization of the Metaverse Standards Forum Trevett explains that the Forum is being streamlined based on initial experiences. Originally, they started with 18 different working groups to identify where the most interest lay. However, due to gaps and overlaps, these groups are now being consolidated into five core areas:

• 3D Assets: Formats like glTF and USD, as well as topics like avatars.

• Spatial Computing: Sensing, IoT, and connectivity.

• Artificial Intelligence (AI): A horizontal topic that touches all areas.

• Regulation and Privacy: Without trust in data privacy, the platform will not be used.

• Ecosystem: General topics such as education.

2. Definitions of Terms and the „Onion Model“ To resolve the confusion around terms like „Metaverse,“ „XR,“ and „Spatial Computing,“ Trevett uses the analogy of an onion ring:

• The Core is XR: An umbrella term for the hardware, meaning Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) with sensors and displays.

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