Alphabet Inc.’s YouTube has launched a dedicated native app for Apple’s Vision Pro headset on Thursday, addressing a long-standing absence in the device’s entertainment ecosystem more than two years after the Vision Pro first debuted in February 2024.
The official app, now available as a free download in the visionOS App Store, enables users to enjoy YouTube content—including standard videos, Shorts, subscriptions, playlists, watch history, and immersive formats like spatial, 360-degree, 3D, and VR180 videos—directly within a theater-like virtual environment. On newer Vision Pro models equipped with the M5 chip, the app even supports 8K playback for compatible content.
Chris Welch for Bloomberg News:
Before now, YouTube was only accessible via the built-in Safari web browser on Apple’s $3,499 mixed-reality headset. The lack of an official app left users without the ability to download videos for offline viewing and take advantage of other features as they’ve long been able to do on mobile devices.
The fact that YouTube waited two years to deliver a Vision Pro app is another reminder of the niche status that surrounds Apple’s headset. Though the device is impressive from a technical standpoint — especially for viewing immersive videos — it lacks the vibrant app ecosystem of Apple’s iPhone, iPad and other hardware.
Netflix Inc. remains a holdout, with no dedicated Vision Pro app available from the streaming service.
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