Report: Apple’s Camera-Equipped AirPods Will Give Visual Intelligence to Siri

Apple’s first camera-equipped AirPods are reportedly nearly ready, but they won’t start shipping until the company completes its long-awaited revamp of its Siri assistant. However, they may not replace the camera on your iPhone, as Apple may restrict their vision capabilities to Siri.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported yesterday that Apple employees are currently testing prototype versions of the new AirPods, which look like AirPods Pro 3 with longer stems to house the cameras and a small LED light indicating when they’re active. However, Gurman believes that the cameras will “essentially act as eyes for the Siri digital assistant and aren’t designed to take photos or video.” This would be a stark contrast to other wearable gadgets like Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, which can take pictures and record video on demand.

“The idea is to let users ask questions about an item they might be looking at,” Gurman said about the new camera-equipped AirPods. “Apple has also been working on other uses for the AI cameras. The device could give the wearer a reminder based on something the camera sees, or it might use external visuals to provide more advanced turn-by-turn directions. The AI could cite a specific landmark ahead when telling users when they should turn,” the reporter added.

According to the report, the new camera-equipped AirPods won’t support hand-gesture controls like the Apple Vision Pro. The main use case will be to provide visual intelligence capabilities to the new version of Siri, which is currently on track to launch in September alongside the release of iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27.

Gurman believes that Apple is expecting strong demand for these new AirPods with built-in cameras, but a Fall release isn’t guaranteed yet. “While the hardware is nearly ready, concerns about the AI elements could further hold back a launch if Apple isn’t pleased with the quality of the visual intelligence features,” Gurman wrote, citing people familiar with the company’s plans.