Apple's inaugural artificial intelligence hardware product may be a pair of headphones with "vision." According to a Bloomberg report on May 7, new camera-equipped AirPods from Apple have entered the late stages of development and are highly likely to become the company's first wearable device specifically designed for the AI era. People familiar with the matter revealed that the project is currently in the Design Verification Test (DVT) phase—the final major development step before mass production—indicating that the hardware design and functionality are nearly finalized. The next step is the Production Verification Test (PVT), which involves starting small-scale mass production. In other words, the hardware is essentially ready. However, sources also noted that if Apple is unsatisfied with the quality of the visual intelligence features, issues with the AI software could still lead to a further delay in the release date.
The camera on these new AirPods operates on a completely different principle than a smartphone camera—it is not for taking photos or recording videos, but rather acts as "eyes" for Siri. Each earbud will contain a built-in camera, capturing low-resolution visual information from the user's surroundings and feeding it to an AI for real-time processing. Users will be able to ask questions directly, such as standing in front of a refrigerator and inquiring, "What can I cook with these ingredients tonight?" Siri would then provide an answer based on what the camera sees. This experience is similar to uploading a photo to ChatGPT with a question or using the Visual Look Up feature on an iPhone—except now it can be done without taking out a phone. Apple is also exploring more use cases: the camera could proactively send reminders after identifying an object, or provide more precise turn-by-turn navigation instructions based on actual landmarks, such as "turn left when you see the red building ahead." In terms of appearance, the new AirPods will resemble the AirPods Pro 3, with the main difference being a longer stem to accommodate the camera module.
Release Timeline: Originally Scheduled for First Half of Year, Now Delayed to Around September This product was initially planned for release as early as the first half of this year but was postponed due to delays in upgrading Siri. Apple has upgraded Siri's underlying model using technology from Alphabet's Gemini. The new version of Siri is currently expected to be ready around September. Apple's major annual fall event, where the product is likely to be unveiled, will be hosted by John Ternus, who is set to become CEO. The product has been in development for approximately four years. Apple's operations team is actively preparing inventory, but according to reports, current shortages of memory chips and other components in the industry are posing significant challenges for parts procurement.
Privacy Concerns: Can a Small LED Light Solve the Problem? Wearable devices with cameras naturally face privacy controversies—smart glasses have already faced significant scrutiny for this reason. Apple's proposed solution is to build a small LED indicator light into the earbuds, which would illuminate when visual data is being uploaded to the cloud. However, according to Bloomberg, given the earbuds' very small size, how clearly this indicator light can actually be seen by others remains a question. Furthermore, the new AirPods will not support gesture control, a feature that distinguishes them from Apple's Vision Pro. Sources indicate that Apple's upcoming smart glasses also currently do not plan to support this functionality.
Ternus's Bet on "Changing the World" These AirPods are one of roughly ten major new products being spearheaded by John Ternus, who is set to become Apple's CEO. Other products include a touch-screen MacBook, a foldable iPhone, and AI-powered smart home devices. Ternus will officially succeed Tim Cook as CEO on September 1st. Ternus has recently been promoting the product pipeline at internal employee events. After being announced as the next CEO, he told employees: "We are about to change the world, again. If you're lucky enough—and I mean really lucky—you get maybe one or two chances in your career to be part of something that is this important. And we have one of those chances right now."
Competitive Landscape: OpenAI and Meta Vie for the Same Market Apple's bet on camera-equipped AirPods comes amid intense competition in the AI hardware space. According to Bloomberg, OpenAI is aggressively recruiting Apple's hardware engineers to develop products that compete with Apple's smart home and mobile devices; Meta is also comprehensively upgrading its own line of AI wearables. Apple's choice to start with AirPods has practical logic: AirPods have been a bestseller since their 2016 debut, often purchased alongside an iPhone, resulting in extremely high market penetration. Compared to smart glasses, headphones present a lower barrier to entry for most consumers. A Bloomberg report in February 2024 first revealed that Apple was developing camera-equipped AirPods. Apple had previously also researched a camera-equipped Apple Watch, but that project was canceled last year. In terms of longer-term product plans, Apple is also developing smart glasses with cameras and a pendant-like device, which could launch as early as next year, but the development progress for both of these products lags behind the new AirPods. Concurrently, Apple is planning a new Siri camera mode for the iPhone in iOS 18, aiming to make visual AI features more prominent at the system level and familiarize more users with the habit of "feeding visual information to AI."
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