Next-generation AirPods Pro (camera-equipped)

Earbuds That Give Siri a View

Apple’s next-generation AirPods Pro may add low-resolution cameras built for visual intelligence rather than photography. The sensors would show Siri what the wearer is looking at, allowing requests such as identifying a book and saving its title without taking out an iPhone.

The cameras are not expected to capture ordinary photos or video. Their purpose is contextual input: feeding nearby visual information into Apple’s AI features so the earbuds can understand more than a spoken question alone provides.

The Demo Model Is Not the One Shipping

Apple has developed two competing camera-equipped designs. The B790 model was based on AirPods Pro 3 and appeared in a demonstration hidden inside macOS Tahoe 26.7, but it has reportedly been removed from the 2026 product roadmap.

The version still moving forward carries the B798 codename and is described as an entirely new generation of AirPods Pro. Supply-chain and software challenges are said to be keeping the project out of Apple’s immediate release plans, despite how finished the leaked demonstration looked.

A Longer Wait for Wearable Visual Intelligence

The current expectation is a fall 2027 launch, potentially alongside the 20th-anniversary iPhone. That extra year may give Apple time to answer the questions that matter as much as the AI itself: how reliably the earbuds understand a scene, what happens to the visual data, and whether an always-available camera can feel useful without feeling intrusive.