The U.S. Department of Transportation has urged Apple Vision Pro owners not to use the headset while driving, even if their vehicle includes a semi-autonomous driving mode, due to the apparent risk it poses to themselves and others.
US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg used X (previously Twitter) to warn drivers that all current automobiles demand the driver to be engaged “at all times.” The warning came after videos of drivers wearing Apple’s recently released spatial computing headset went viral on social media, including one that Buttigieg tweeted.
Another video shows a man appearing to be hauled up by police while wearing the headset in his Tesla. The driver then revealed to Gizmodo that it was a “skit” he created with the help of pals, although he apparently “drove with the headgear for 30-40 seconds.”
In its Vision Pro support material, Apple warns customers to “never use the device while operating a moving vehicle, bicycle, heavy machinery, or in any other situations demanding attention to safety.” Apple recommends using Vision Pro outside “only in controlled situations.”
Apple Vision Pro debuted in the United States on Friday, and there are already multiple YouTube videos of people using the headset while skateboarding along busy streets, walking around airport terminals, taking the subway, and navigating other public spaces.
