ARKit 2.0 Will Let Two iPhones See the Same Virtual Object - MacRumors
Skip to Content

ARKit 2.0 Will Let Two iPhones See the Same Virtual Object

by

iOS 12, set to be unveiled at the Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday, will include ARKit 2.0, an upgrade to the existing ARKit 1.5 SDK that's available to developers to allow them to build augmented reality experiences in their apps.

ARKit 2.0, according to a new report from Reuters, will include a feature that's designed to let two iPhone users share an augmented reality experience, with the same objects displayed on multiple screens.

augmentedreality
This is in line with previous rumors from Bloomberg that have said Apple is working on both multiplayer augmented reality gameplay and object permanence, which would allow a virtual object to remain in place across multiple app sessions.

Apple is aiming to allow two people to share data so they can see the same virtual object in the same space via each individual device, with Apple designing the feature in a privacy-friendly way.

Apple's multiplayer system, unlike similar offerings from Google, does not require users to share scans of their homes and personal spaces, working via a phone-to-phone system.

Apple designed its two-player system to work phone-to-phone in part because of those privacy concerns, one of the people familiar with the matter said. The approach, which has not been previously reported, differs from Google's, which requires scans of a player's environment to be sent to, and stored in, the cloud.

Full details on how Apple's multiplayer augmented reality system will work are unknown, and it's not yet clear if it works with three or more players. Apple will share more information on the feature on Monday.

Augmented reality has been a major focus for Apple over the course of the last two years, with Apple CEO Tim Cook calling AR "big and profound." "We're high on AR in the long run," Cook said in 2016.

Apple unveiled its first augmented reality product, ARKit, with iOS 11 at WWDC, and has since made improvements to the feature with the launch of ARKit 1.5 in March as part of iOS 11.3. ARKit brought mapping for irregularly shaped surfaces, vertical surface placement, and object and image recognition. With the additional changes coming in iOS 12, developers should be able to do a whole lot more with augmented reality.

Tag: ARKit
Related Forum: iOS 12

Popular Stories

Apple Event Logo

Apple's Next Era Begins September 1

Thursday May 7, 2026 10:36 am PDT by
Apple recently announced that Tim Cook will be stepping down as CEO later this year, after 15 years of leading the company. Effective September 1, Apple's hardware engineering chief John Ternus will become the company's next CEO, while Cook will become executive chairman of Apple's board of directors. In his new role, Apple said Cook will assist with "certain aspects" of the company,...
Read Full Article
Instagram Feature 2

PSA: Instagram Encrypted Messaging Ends on Friday, May 8

Tuesday May 5, 2026 8:24 am PDT by
Instagram will remove end-to-end encryption for direct messages between users from May 8, 2026. When the date comes around, Meta will potentially be able to see the contents of all messages between users on the social media platform. Encrypting messages has been an optional feature in Instagram since 2023, but in March of this year the social media platform quietly updated a help page to say ...
Read Full Article • 54 comments
Apple Event Logo

Apple Just Released a New Accessory

Monday May 4, 2026 8:13 am PDT by
Apple today released a new Pride Edition Sport Loop for the Apple Watch. The band features a rainbow design with 11 colors of woven nylon yarns. The new Pride Edition Sport Loop is available to order now on Apple.com and in the Apple Store app in 40mm, 42mm, and 46mm sizes, and it will be available at Apple Store locations starting later this week. In the U.S., the band costs $49. There...
Read Full Article

Top Rated Comments

shareef777 Avatar
shareef777
104 months ago
Great tech demo. Meanwhile, still trying to find practical uses for AR in the real world.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
fairuz Avatar
fairuz
104 months ago
The sheer processing power required to render the same object, with the same vector, on two different phones, with different perspectives, is going to be insane. I wouldn't be surprised if they end up having to require a nearby Mac for processing, acting as a LAN server.
What's difficult in terms of processing about that? It seems like they just have to agree on where the object should be, then they can do their own thing.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
B
Baymowe335
104 months ago
Great tech demo. Meanwhile, still trying to find practical uses for AR in the real world.
You aren’t thinking nearly deeply enough. The uses are countless.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
berrymetal Avatar
berrymetal
104 months ago
I want to place a huge pikachu 3D model on top of my building, and I want everyone to see it.

Can't wait
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Markoth Avatar
Markoth
104 months ago
If only someone could invent something even better than this. Something tangible, in the real world, without requiring special hardware and software. Maybe we could take a board or paper and write those things on it? Then somehow attach it to the building with nails or adhesive. We could call it a "sign" and anyone could use it! Will probably never work though because people's phones are always blocking their view of the world.
Adding signs for every piece of information one might want to know about a business is highly impractical. With such an app, there is no limit to the amount of information that can be exposed, by simply pointing the camera at the business.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macduke Avatar
macduke
104 months ago
Pretty straightforward to me. Walk down the street, see a business, point your phone at it and see the business's info, website, hours, phone number, etc, without even having to do a google search. Lets you "business shop" in the blink of an eye. I'd really like this, tbh. :| Could probably simply integrate with Yelp, and use image recognition for business logos/names, as well as use location to aid in finding the business, if it's a small local thing.
If only someone could invent something even better than this. Something tangible, in the real world, without requiring special hardware and software. Maybe we could take a board or paper and write those things on it? Then somehow attach it to the building with nails or adhesive. We could call it a "sign" and anyone could use it! Will probably never work though because people's phones are always blocking their view of the world.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments