Consumer virtual reality headsets were first released by video game companies in the early-mid 1990s. Beginning in the 2010s, next-generation commercial tethered headsets were released by Oculus (Rift), HTC (Vive) and Sony (PlayStation VR), setting off a new wave of application development.

When was the first VR headset made?

In 1968 Ivan Sutherland and his student Bob Sproull created the first VR / AR head mounted display (Sword of Damocles) that was connected to a computer and not a camera. It was a large and scary looking contraption that was too heavy for any user to comfortably wear and was suspended from the ceiling (hence its name).

What was the first virtual reality headset?

The first VR head-mounted display (HMD) system, The Sword of Damocles, was invented in 1968 by computer scientist Ivan Sutherland and his student Bob Sproull.