I don't get why Apple haven't added source independent spatial audio. Like Audeze did with Mobius. The headphones use accelerometer and gyroscope (which AirPods have too I presume), and position the center of the audio to where you are looking. You can re-center it with a button press. And it works pretty well!
So, the hardware is all there. Apple could have done the same, bringing spatial audio to whatever place you want.
To be fair, there’s also an auto-centering mode, which will move sound source to be in front after your head has been still for a few seconds. But I get it, sometimes you want to just put sound somewhere and want it to stay there, and you’ll need button for that in Mobius or additional hardware in AirPods
I also have the Audeze Mobius headset and I pair it with my Apple TV to watch movies, and it's a really great experience..
I've had these for 2+ years and I tell people "you forget that you're wearing headphones" and that's exactly how Gruber describes it too..
So I'm also really surprised to hear that the spatial/positional stuff on Apple's headphones only works when paired with a compatible device, and it's just phones and tablets.
So, the hardware is all there. Apple could have done the same, bringing spatial audio to whatever place you want.