Apple’s upcoming camera-equipped AirPods Pro are nearing completion and have reached an “advanced” stage of testing, reports Bloomberg. The design is almost finalized, as are the feature set, and mass production could begin soon.
AirPods Pro will have built-in cameras that provide Siri with visual information about the wearer’s surroundings. Although there will be a longer stem for the camera in each AirPod, the device will otherwise resemble the AirPods Pro 3.
The AirPods’ cameras will not be able to take photos or videos and will only be used for AI purposes. A small LED light will turn on when the AirPods send visual information to Siri.
Apple wants users to be able to view an item and ask Siri about it, similar to uploading images in chatbot apps. The cameras could also offer reminders based on visual information and give more detailed, step-by-step instructions by visualizing what is around the wearer.
The Camera app in iOS 27 is also set to benefit from a Siri mode incorporating visual intelligence, allowing users to do things like scan nutrition labels on food packages for calorie tracking.
Apple wanted to start selling the camera-equipped AirPods Pro in the first half of 2026, but the product launch has been delayed because the smarter AI version of Siri is not yet ready to launch. The new Siri is expected to be introduced in September in iOS 27, macOS 27, and iPadOS 27, so we could see the AirPods Pro launch in the same time frame.
Apple could also choose to wait to launch AirPods if it is not satisfied with the quality of the Visual Intelligence features planned for Siri.
It’s not yet clear how exactly the new AirPods will fit into Apple’s lineup. Rumors suggest that Apple has no plans to call them “AirPods Pro 4”, but instead they could be called AirPods Ultra, or perhaps “AirPods Pro 3” with cameras.