Man crossing street wearing VR headset prompts police warning

The San Diego Police Department warned residents on Monday to “cross streets the old-fashioned way” after a video garnered attention showing a man operating a virtual reality (VR) headset while crossing the street in the California city.

“A video making its rounds online shows our patrol team in Central Division ‘face-to-face’ with the future — a pedestrian donning the latest Apple Vision Pro headset while walking in the street downtown,” the police department said on Instagram, referring to the video.

“It was a sight that had us pausing in bewilderment,” the police continued.

In the video, posted by producer Michael Ciccone and reposted by San Diego Humor, three police officers are standing by a police car along with a civilian who appears to be apprehended.

Several feet a way, a man wearing an Apple Vision Pro headset is seen crossing the street, moving his hands, as if scrolling through a menu. As the headset user crosses the street, one of the officers turns around in apparent disbelief.

A subsequent video was shared by San Diego Humor, showing the same moment from the perspective of the headset operator, who was scrolling through music options at the time.

The police statement said that while the department supports “exploring new dimensions and technology,” they encouraged the public to “remember the importance of pedestrian safety.”

“Keep those virtual experiences on the sidewalk, folks, and let’s cross streets the old-fashioned way — with our eyes wide open to the real world, unobstructed and without distractions!” the statement added.

Apple’s Vision Pro, the company’s first new product in seven years, debuted at $3,500 in the U.S. earlier this month. Apple has described it as “a revolutionary spatial computer that seamlessly blends digital content with the physical world.”