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CUPERTINO — Apple on Monday unveiled its first mixed reality headset, challenging Facebook-owner Meta in a market that has yet to tempt users beyond videogamers and tech geeks.

The release was the most significant product launch by the iPhone maker since it unveiled the Apple Watch in 2015.

The Vision Pro, which was generally well received on Monday, will cost a hefty $3,499 and be available early next year in the United States only, the company said.

"There are certain products that shift the way we look at technology and the role it plays in our lives," said Apple CEO Tim Cook as he unveiled the sleek VR device that resembled ski goggles.

"We believe Apple Vision Pro is a revolutionary product with the performance, immersion and capability that only Apple can deliver," he added.

The headgear, which Apple referred to as a spatial computer, was introduced at the close of an Apple event in Cupertino, California in which the company announced a long list of product updates.

The product has been in development at Apple for years, and will focus on gaming, streaming video and conferencing.

Company executives insisted that the Vision Pro offers an unchallenged experience, making the hard sell on tech that has yet to win the hearts of the greater public.

Unlike its rivals, the Vision Pro delivers mixed reality technology that "clearly situates the user in their environment", said Insider Intelligence principal analyst Yory Wurmser.

"Whereas Meta Quest and other devices are virtual reality-first, Vision Pro keeps the user in the present and emphasizes the mixed reality features — unless they choose otherwise," he added.

Vision Pro allows wearers to twist a watch-like "crown" to go from having interactive imagery augment one's surroundings to being fully immersed in a rich 3-D experience that feels like being in a video or on a sports playing field, a hands-on demonstration showed.

Apple went to great lengths to preserve its signature design minimalism, at least to the extent that it could, given the technology squeezed into the Vision Pro.

The device has a glass front, an alumium frame, five sensors, 12 cameras, a display for each eye, and a computer that is cooled with a fan. 

Smaller than a scuba diving mask, Vision Pro will run mainly by being plugged into a power source in a clear effort to preserve a sleek design.

A cord-attached battery pack, which would slide into your pocket, would work for no more than two hours.

Vision Pro optics are tuned to each wearer's eyes, freeing them from eyeglasses during use and also providing optical identification to verify user identity, the demonstration showed.

'Blown away' 

Tech companies have struggled to sell virtual reality headsets to a wider audience that is uncomfortable with wearing a mask.

In an effort to overcome that resistance, internal cameras on Apple's version will project the user's eyes on an external screen.

"As a non VR believer, I was actually blown away by how seamless the experience is," said tech analyst Carolina Milanesi of Creative Strategies.

While wearing Vision Pro one can see who is nearby, and even look them in the eyes and have a conversation.

Disney partnered with Apple for the launch and the Mickey Mouse company teased content from Marvel, Star Wars and live sports that would be available on the device and provide an immersive experience.

Apple said that over 100 video games would be available from the day of release.

Collision course

The release puts Apple on a collision course with Meta, which had taken a head start on doubling down on virtual worlds.

Just days before Apple's event, Meta ramped up its line of much cheaper Quest virtual reality headgear.

A new-generation Quest 3 will be available later this year at a starting price of $500.

Meta's experience with the so-called metaverse has been humbling despite it being a leader in the emergent sector and many questioned whether Apple would in the end jump in.

Less than two years after changing its name to Meta to reflect a metaverse priority, the Facebook giant has fired tens of thousands of staff and promised to get back to its social media basics.

Geneva — Qatar's labour minister was on Monday appointed without a vote to head the International Labour Organisation's annual decision-making conference, despite union criticism amid concerns over labour conditions in Qatar. 

Asian and Pacific nations, which according to a regional rotation had dibs this year on selecting the president of the two-week International Labour Conference, had proposed Ali Bin Samikh Al Marri.

Usually, such picks are approved by acclamation, but this year, some unions had called for a vote, deeming that concerns around labour conditions in Qatar raised questions about the suitability of having a Qatari minister in the post.

But the group representing unions and workers' interests within the ILO's tripartite system — alongside government and private sector employer groups — said Monday that a deal had been reached and it could accept the appointment without calling for a vote.

Qatar has long faced harsh criticism over labour rights, especially in the lead-up to last year's football World Cup.

The country's treatment of migrant labourers came under particular scrutiny amid controversy over numerous deaths and injuries on mega construction projects.

Despite reforms, rights groups have said workers in Qatar continue to face exploitation and unsafe working conditions.

'Serious doubts' 

Union group head Catelene Passchier stressed that "Qatar has in recent years been the subject of scrutiny ... regarding the violations of fundamental rights of big numbers of migrant workers in the runup to the football World Cup". 

The Dutch unionist acknowledged that the country had since engaged with the ILO "on fundamental reforms to its legal system" and had made "improvements on the ground". 

But, she said, unions on the ground had continued to express "serious doubts" over Qatar's commitment to continue implementing the reforms.

This had spurred "extensive conversations" in recent weeks and days, she said, resulting in a joint understanding that Qatar should speed up the implementation. 

"We commend Qatar for stepping up its engagement with the ILO and the international trade union movement," she said, adding that the union group had accepted Al Marri's nomination.

After his appointment, Al Marri himself pointed out to the conference that his country had introduced a minimum wage and improved conditions for domestic workers.

"We know there is still work to be done, and we are committed to doing it," he said, stressing though that the social dialogue would need to be adapted to the "reality" in his country.

In a letter sent to its 338 affiliate national organisations, representing 200 million workers, the International Trade Union Confederation acting general secretary Luc Triangle said a meeting had been held on June 3 with Al Marri and that another would follow by late July.

"It was recognised that, while progress had been made which was an example to other countries in the region, more was needed to ensure decent work for migrant workers in Qatar," he said.

Among other things, he called for "the guaranteed right to operate and act by all global unions in Qatar."

CASABLANCA — Hundreds demonstrated Sunday in Morocco's economic capital Casablanca to protest against the surging cost of living in the North African country and urge action by the government, AFP correspondents said.

Protesters from the Democratic Labour Confederation (CDT) rallied in Casablanca's historic centre "to shout out our discontent with price hikes and with attacks on purchasing power", protester Abdellah Lagbouri told AFP.

Lagbouri came to the rally from Agadir, a city further south on the Atlantic coast. Other demonstrators also travelled from across the country to Casablanca for the protest.

AFP correspondents saw scuffles between security forces and protesters, but said the rally ended without major incident.

"It's shameful, workers' livelihoods are in danger," demonstrators shouted.

CDT official Tarik Alaoui El Housseini said the organisation had initially planned a march on Casablanca, but objections from local authorities made them opt for a rally instead.

Morocco has seen months of rising prices, particularly of food, fuel and other basic staples, in part due to recurrent drought that has affected the agriculture sector.

Year-on-year inflation slowed in April to 7.8 per cent, after 10.1 per cent in February and 8.2 per cent in March, according to official figures.

Nadia Soubat, another CDT official, said the group denounced "the government's inaction in applying the social accord achieved last year".

The agreement signed in April 2022 between the Moroccan government and major labour unions stipulated a rise in minimum wages in both the public and private sectors.

Government spokesman Mustapha Baitas said recently that "the government honoured a large part of its commitments despite the difficult circumstances".

WASHINGTON — US President Joe Biden told Americans on Friday in a rare Oval Office address that the debt ceiling bill passed by Congress after weeks of wrangling saved the country from "economic collapse".

Speaking from behind the historic Resolute Desk on live primetime television, Biden said that the deal resolving the stand-off between Democrats and Republicans was a compromise where "no one got everything they wanted".

"We averted an economic crisis and an economic collapse," he said, adding that "the stakes could not have been higher".

Biden said he will sign the bill, which authorises the government to extend the so-called debt ceiling and renew borrowing, into law on Saturday.

The US Treasury Department had warned that if the debt ceiling was blocked beyond Monday, the country could default on its $31 trillion debt. A default would have likely triggered market panic, huge job losses and a recession, with global implications.

"Nothing would have been more catastrophic," Biden said.

Oval Office addresses have always been reserved by presidents for moments of unique national danger or importance.

Biden used the occasion to project a reassuring, calm tone. Sprinkling his speech with chuckles and smiles, he praised his opponents for negotiating in good faith and promised Americans that he had never felt more optimistic.

Biden said that Congress has now preserved "the full faith and credit of the United States".

But even with the House and Senate putting aside differences to finally rush through an agreement over the last week, the US economy's reputation took a hit.

Ratings agency Fitch said on Friday that it is keeping the United States' 

"AAA" credit rating on negative watch, despite the deal.

Campaign boost? 

The debt ceiling is usually an uncontroversial accounting maneuver approved yearly by Congress. It allows the government to keep borrowing money to pay for bills already incurred.

This year, hard-right Republicans dominating their party's narrow majority in the House of Representatives, decided to use the must-pass vote as leverage for forcing Biden into accepting cuts to many Democratic spending priorities.

This triggered a test of political strength that threatened to end in chaos before the two sides agreed this week on raising the debt ceiling while freezing some budgetary spending in return — yet stopping well short of Republican demands for cuts.

Kevin McCarthy, the speaker of the Republican-led House, had touted the compromise bill as a big victory for conservatives, although he faced a backlash from hardliners on the right who said he made too many concessions.

But Biden, who is campaigning for reelection in 2024, sees the dramatic resolution to the crisis as a win, showcasing his negotiating powers and his pitch to be the moderate voice in an increasingly extreme political landscape.

He burnished those credentials in the speech by going out of his way to praise McCarthy, a politician long loyal to former president Donald Trump — the man Biden defeated in 2020 and who is seeking his own return in 2024.

"I want to commend Speaker McCarthy. You know, he and I, we and our teams, were able to get along, get things done," Biden said, calling the Republican negotiators "completely honest and respectful of one another".

TUNIS — Tunisia's President Kais Saied on Thursday proposed taxing the North African country's wealthiest citizens as a way of avoiding what he has called the "diktats" of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Despite reaching an agreement in principle last October on a bailout package worth nearly $2 billion, talks with the IMF have stalled for months over demands to restructure public bodies and lift subsidies on basic goods.

Saied said during a meeting with Prime Minister Najla Bouden that the current subsidy system benefits all Tunisians, including the wealthy, a presidency statement said.

He floated the idea of "taking surplus money from the rich to give to the poor", citing a quote attributed to Omar Ibn Al Khattab, one of Islam's first caliphs.

"Instead of lifting subsidies in the name of rationalisation, it would be possible to introduce additional taxes on those who benefit from them without needing them," Saied added.

He said he believed such a mechanism would mean the country would not have to bow down to "foreign diktats".

Saied did not say how such a plan might operate as employees' taxes are deducted at source and many Tunisians in the private sector do not declare their full income.

The IMF has called for legislation to restructure more than 100 state-owned firms, which hold monopolies over many parts of the economy and in many cases are heavily indebted.

The country is going through a financial crisis marked by chronic shortages of basic food products.

Political tensions are also running high since Saied launched a sweeping power grab in July 2021, rocking the democracy in the birthplace of the Arab Spring revolts over 10 years previously.