Google and Magic Leap have announced a strategic partnership to develop new extended reality technologies. Despite Google recently downsizing its augmented and extended reality teams, and Magic Leap's notorious flop in the field, the collaboration could pose a challenge to Apple and Meta in the metaverse hardware market. The partnership will leverage Magic Leap's optics expertise and Google's infrastructure, potentially leading to a new AR/XR headset. However, the specifics of what Google gains from the deal remain unclear.