WARNING: The following contains SPOILERS for Doctor Strange 2.
Vision's (Marvel Cinematic Universe) powers seem to be at their height in Avengers: Age of Ultron, but the sentient construct's abilities significantly decrease in his following major MCU appearances. In contrast to Vision's diminishing abilities, Wanda Maximoff, also known as Scarlet Witch, controls enough power to threaten the entire multiverse in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Moreover, unlike Wanda, Vision wasn't part of the Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness cast, nor the cast of any other Marvel series or movie following WandaVision, so it's difficult to answer questions like how powerful Vision truly is, or even whether Vision more powerful than Wanda. That said, these are still legitimate questions, as Hex Vision, also known as White Vision, is still out there somewhere, empowered by the original Vision's memories, but also dealing with a grief that no other android, cosmic being, or magical creature in the MCU has endured. Understanding Vision's continued evolution entails looking back at the character's origins.
Vision's powerful vibranium body was created by Tony Stark's rogue Ultron android, who wished to transfer into a perfect synthetic host powered by the Mind Stone. The Avengers reclaim this project and instead upload Tony's personal A.I. assistant J.A.R.V.I.S. into the shell, creating a superhero who would not only fight alongside them but also rapidly develop a personality all of its own. White Vision's MCU future is contingent on these facts. Powered by the Mind Stone, Vision is immensely powerful in Avengers: Age of Ultron. In his debut outing, Vision proves he can fire energy beams, alter his density at will, fly, and even wield Thor's weapon Mjolnir. Vision effortlessly destroys Ultron's robotic minions and puts up a better fight against the metallic menace himself than the other Avengers. At Age of Ultron's climax, it's Vision who ultimately destroys the titular villain with a blast of Mind Stone power. Vision is presented as arguably the strongest Avenger at this particular point in the MCU timeline.
However, Vision comes across as considerably weaker during subsequent appearances in Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War. During the airport clash against Team Rogers, Vision is useful, but no more so than any other superhero fighting on Tony Stark's side. Notably, this is when Wanda and Vision start developing a relationship. Crucially, it's Vision who accidentally shoots down War Machine with an errant laser beam - a distinctly human error for a usually precise android. Moving on to Avengers: Infinity War, Vision and Wanda are attacked by Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight, and Vision does little to defend himself. After being taken by surprise and stabbed, Vision is largely useless in the battle and is only saved thanks to the arrival of Captain America and his friends. In Wakanda, Vision did manage to kill Glaive but was swiftly relieved of his Mind Stone and destroyed by Thanos. Throughout Thanos' invasion of Earth, the Mad Titan's four main henchmen become increasingly anonymous, and this makes Vision's Avengers: Infinity War defeat look even worse.
Vision’s Decreased MCU Power Level Improves The Story
Vision’s powers have decreased as the MCU has progressed to prevent him from becoming a deus ex machina and overpowering other important characters’ narratives. In fact, even the Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness post-credits scenes, during which many viewers expected Vision to appear, didn't feature the character, which simply means that it's not time for White Vision to return. Clearly, Vision is no longer the unstoppable machine that MCU fans first met in Avengers: Age of Ultron. This version of the character could've put an end to the Civil War between Iron Man and Captain America instantly, and surely would've sensed Glaive and Midnight's surprise attack in Avengers: Infinity War. Even with a nasty injury, the Vision of old should've been able to see off Thanos' goons and then put up more of a fight against Josh Brolin's villain in Wakanda, especially considering the likes of Captain America and Thor were able to get some good shots in. However, during both the Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War, Vision was as inconsequential as Doctor Strange 2's Mr. Fantastic (John Krasinski).
The MCU does try to account for Vision appearing so much weaker in Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War, although some reasons are more explicit than others. During the battle against Steve Rogers in Leipzig, it's safe to assume that Vision was holding back considerably due to the "civil" context of the fight. Not only does the opposition team include Vision's own love interest, he's also going up against former allies such as Rogers and Sam Wilson. Vision is ha3rdly going to go straight for the kill. Even with the folks he doesn't know (Ant-Man, Bucky), Vision undoubtedly recognizes these aren't bad people that he can just cut open with the Mind Stone – similar to the way Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness' Illuminati couldn't just kill Earth-616 Doctor Strange.
The reasoning behind Vision's lesser power level in Avengers: Infinity War is less convincing. The Russo brothers perhaps hoped that showing Vision stabbed by surprise would explain his relative weakness for the remainder of the film. Vision isn't the central focus of Avengers: Infinity War, and Thanos needs to somehow get the Mind Stone out of his forehead, so it wouldn't do to have Vision easily defeating Thanos' emissaries and fighting competitively in battles that increase the film's already considerable runtime. The more the MCU's roster swells, the more overpowered characters become a problem. In Avengers: Endgame, for example, Captain Marvel is written out right until the very end, simply because she's too powerful to stick around for long. Vision posed the same problem; the power he showed during Avengers: Age of Ultron would've made the events of Civil War and Infinity War far less dramatic.
Is Vision Stronger Than Wanda?
Vision's Marvel Cinematic Universe powers could soon get upgraded beyond the levels shown in Avengers: Age of Ultron, especially following the events of both WandaVision and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Vision could well become more powerful than Wanda when White Vision finally returns to the MCU. This is because Vision's potential is similar to Scarlet Witch, Strange, America Chavez, Hulk, Captain Marvel, Thor, and Monica Rambeau - it's predicated on self-belief. This is how Marvel keeps characters in Phase 4 of the MCU from being too overpowered and uninteresting. Indeed, the climactic reveal of America Chavez's powers, Doctor Strange's potential, and the long magical duel between Strange and Scarlet Witch wouldn't have been possible in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness had America Chavez simply believed in herself. America has the potential to be even more dangerous than Wanda, but her powers were limited by internal conflicts, and the same could be true for White Vision upon his return.
Notably, Vision and Scarlet Witch are both powered either fully or in part by the Mind Stone, which provides clues regarding Vision's true potential. As Wanda’s projection of Vision in WandaVision managed to transfer all of his memories into White Vision, he's likely to still be alive, and White Vision could experience something similar to how Wanda's true potential was unlocked by Vision's death. Indeed, Scarlet Witch's death in Doctor Strange 2 could very well be a setup for White Vision's return, armed with all the wisdom of the original Vision and the raw power of an Infinity Stone. Unlike Wanda, Vision isn't prophesized to either destroy or rule over all reality. That said, in the grand calculus of the multiverse, and especially considering the yet-unexplained true nature of the Sacred Timeline, White Vision could conceivably become the most dangerous character in MCU Phase 4. Based on their origins, Vision has the same potential as Wanda, whose very subconscious thoughts can violate reality. However, Vision's perfect mind is infinitely more powerful than Wanda or anyone in the MCU. It's possible that Ultron's death in Age of Ultron was a fated step towards the inevitable rise of White Vision.
Vision and Wanda could still reunite - it's well-known that death is fickle in the MCU, especially for crucial characters like Wanda and even Doctor Strange 2's Professor X, whose character arc still has a lot to offer. If White Vision survived, he and Wanda might well be at equivalent power levels, making Avengers: Age of Ultron-era Vision look weak in comparison. That said, Wanda only has two weaknesses – Vision and her kids – but the grief also fuels her strength. Even Wanda's death in Doctor Strange 2 implies that only Scarlet Witch can truly destroy herself. Vision might have the same potential as Wanda, but her sense of love and loss could overpower them both. As Vision once asked, “What is love but grief persevering?”
