Due to iOS’s reach, and the size of the developer network that’s blossomed around it, Apple’s ARKit introduction this week creates the worlds largest AR development platform overnight.

It also preempts much larger VR/AR moves for Apple, building towards the longer-term play we’ve predicted. Nearer term, ARKit will engender lots of AR apps we’ll see populate the app store.

Those will be iPhone centric, developing over time into glasses-based apps. Apple knows that the smartphone – already in everyone’s pocket – is the nearer term and scalable AR opportunity. Luckily that format is where it already owns hundreds of millions of users.

In case you didn’t get the chance to see the ARKit unveiling, you can see it below, timestamped at the right moment for all the AR action. Enjoy.

https://youtu.be/hntVmN2aK8k?t=1h24m41s