From 2D to 3D: Pulling Back the Curtain on Virtual Reality's Technical Foundations

Last month, we witnessed the launch of Apple Vision Pro together. This epoch-making product sparked a wave of discussion around AR/VR technology, with everyone marveling that the future has arrived faster than imagined. It not only showed us scenarios for future tech use but, more importantly, represented the cutting edge of today's virtual reality industry. Yet skepticism never fully disappeared. The Financial Times reported that due to design complexity and production difficulties, Apple was forced to make "significant cuts" to its production forecasts for the Vision Pro mixed-reality headset. Has Apple hit a technical bottleneck? Can this product launch on schedule? Is a $3,500 headset worth consumers' money?

With these questions in mind, we're honored to have Chen Chen, founder of Saphlux, join us for this episode. He'll share his perspective on virtual reality technology and his entrepreneurial journey from the dual vantage point of both researcher and founder. Saphlux has long focused on R&D and manufacturing of gallium nitride light-emitting materials, with products already widely applied in AR, VR, medical devices, and other fields — demonstrating formidable innovation capabilities and market potential.

Chen Chen is an entrepreneur committed to commercializing hard tech. After graduating from Tsinghua University in 2006, he went to Harvard University as a postdoctoral researcher. At Schlumberger, he successfully developed and commercialized rotating polycrystalline diamond compact drill bits, generating billions of dollars in revenue for the company. During his MBA at Yale University, he began his entrepreneurial journey, met Professor Jung Han from the Department of Electrical Engineering, and co-founded Saphlux. ZhenFund became their angel investor in 2014. Saphlux has consistently focused on R&D and manufacturing of NPQD® (Nanopores-Quantum Dots) Micro-LED display technology. According to the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology — Virtual (Augmented) Reality White Paper, "Micro-LED has become the next-generation display technology that the industry looks forward to following LCD and OLED, and its broad market prospects have led numerous industry giants to accelerate their strategic deployments."

In this podcast episode, we're honored to have Yue Li, investment manager at ZhenFund and fellow Tsinghua alumnus, and Chen Chen, founder of Saphlux, join us for an in-depth conversation. From the perspective of tech entrepreneurs, they discuss how technical founders achieve product commercialization; why technical founders are often accused of "building in a vacuum"; how hardware manufacturers should respond to the explosive growth expected in AR over the next three to five years; and whether Apple Vision Pro qualifies as a "consumer product."

Host: Yue Li, Investment Manager, ZhenFund

Guest: Chen Chen, Founder and CEO, Saphlux

Timeline

02:53 How experience at major tech companies empowers independent entrepreneurship

07:19 How entrepreneurs can better face pressure

09:43 The perpetually "steep" learning curve on the entrepreneurial journey

10:00 Hardware company forced to pivot, fortunately shifting into the fast lane

12:59 What young people need to think through at the start of their entrepreneurial journey

19:30 How Apple Vision Pro differs from already-released PICO and Oculus Quest headsets

22:31 An iPhone, but on your face

25:18 How AR and VR technology can better integrate with AI

30:25 Industry insider analysis of Vision Pro's hardware technology

34:30 Micro LED's development potential and current state

46:15 Does hardware entrepreneurship equal hardcore technology?

Reference Materials

Micro LED: A novel display technology widely regarded as the next-generation display technology following liquid crystal displays (LCD) and organic light-emitting diodes (OLED). Micro LED technology is based on miniaturized LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes), where each LED pixel can emit light independently and brightness can be controlled individually pixel by pixel, enabling extremely high contrast ratios, vibrant colors, and exceptionally fast response times.

Micro OLED (Micro Organic Light Emitting Diodes): A micro-display technology based on organic light-emitting diodes (OLED). Micro OLED technology is specifically designed for small, high-resolution displays such as wearable devices, head-mounted displays, AR (Augmented Reality) devices, and VR (Virtual Reality) devices.

China Academy of Information and Communications Technology — Virtual (Augmented) Reality White Paper

Report on Apple being forced to significantly cut Vision Pro production plans