Microsoft to hold VR and AR event event in San Francisco on October 3

Microsoft has started inviting journalists to attend an October 3rd, 2017 event in San Francisco, California.

The company promises to provide attendees an “opportunity to hear where Microsoft is headed next.” With Alex Kipman, the Microsoft employee credited with inventing the Kinect and HoloLens, scheduled to speak at the event, and the first wave of Windows 10 Mixed Reality headsets set to arrive on October 17, most publications expect Microsoft will use the occasion to talk about its virtual and augmented reality ambitions. The event, coincidently, is scheduled to go down one day before Google unveils its new Pixel smartphones.

What Microsoft is not expected to unveil is a new HoloLens headset, nor is it expected to show off its own entry-level mixed reality headset. In fact, Microsoft will reportedly not unveil a consumer-facing HoloLens product until sometime in 2019. Instead, the focus will be on manufacturing partners like Dell.

According to Business Insider, Microsoft will not hold a follow-up fall event in New York City. In the past, Microsoft has unveiled new Surface devices at its New York City events. As such, it’s unlikely we’ll see the company announce a successor to the two-year-old Surface Book.

[via]The Verge, Business Insider[/via]