Spatial Realities
Spatial Realities
Thomas Riedel
E117 - UnitedXR: The State of the Metaverse Standards Forum, Standards for AI and what about Apple? with Neil Trevett
21 minutes Posted Dec 11, 2025 at 2:34 pm.
Intro Music
Intro: Spatial Realities & Neil Trevett Bio
Interview Start: The State of the Metaverse Standards Forum
Reorganization: From 18 to 5 Working Groups
Current Focus: 3D Assets, AI, Privacy & Ethics
Terminology Confusion: XR, Spatial Computing or Metaverse?
Neil’s Take: Why AR (not VR) is the "True" Metaverse
Apple’s Role: Proprietary Innovation vs. Open Standards
The AI Explosion: Semantics & Device Inferencing
New Tech: Standardizing Gaussian Splatting in glTF
The "Magic Wand": The Metaverse as the Spatial Web
The Need for an Open Source Sandbox
UnitedXR & The Importance of Community
Outro & Next Steps
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21:49
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Show notes
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.