Apple’s rumored AirPods with cameras are nearing the stage where the company will test initial mass production, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reports. Currently, Apple testers are “actively using” prototypes that are in the design validation testing phase, which is one step before the production validation testing phase.
According to Gurman, the AirPods’ cameras are “not designed” to capture photos or video but rather they can capture “visual information in low resolution” that users can ask Siri about, such as asking the AI assistant what they should cook with the ingredients in front of them. They can also use cameras to help with things like turn-by-turn directions.
Gurman says these new AirPods will look like the AirPods Pro 3 but will have longer stems due to the camera technology. The AirPods will have a “small” LED light that will indicate when “visual data is being fed to the cloud.” Apple apparently wanted to launch new AirPods in the first half of 2026, but it was pushed back due to delays in its upgraded Siri. Gurman says the enhanced Siri is “on track” to launch in September — perhaps these new AirPods will launch around the same time frame. (AirPods Pro 3 were announced in September 2025.)
Apple’s push into AI-infused gadgets will put it in competition with Meta, which has had success with its smart glasses, and could give the company an edge over OpenAI, which is reportedly building a phone. According to Gurman, Apple is also developing smart glasses and an AI pendant that could launch as early as 2027.
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