For nearly two years, the rumor mill has speculated that Apple is planning to embed cameras into a future pair of AirPods. While that might sound at first like Apple is looking to turn its popular earbuds into a sort of smart glasses-inspired device—with all the privacy caveats that come with it—that doesn't appear to be the case. Instead, should Apple's camera-enabled AirPods be real, its lenses will likely be used by Siri AI to better assist you when your iPhone isn't around.
In effect, your AirPods would become a new type of AI device, with the same effect as taking out your iPhone and opening Visual Intelligence, or launching Voice Mode on ChatGPT. Instead of pointing your iPhone's camera at something in the real world and asking Siri AI questions about it, you could instead utilize your AirPods' cameras. It'd make Siri AI a bit more like how smart assistants are depicted in the movie Her—whether you think that's a good or bad thing.
AI AirPods with cameras appear to be on their way #
While we won't know for sure whether or not "seeing AirPods" are in the works until Apple officially announces them, this latest discovery does seem to confirm their existence. While diving through the Release Candidate for macOS 26.7, MacRumors found a video file showing off what appears to be a demonstration of AirPods running Visual Intelligence on their own. In the video, a man holds up the book Could Should Might Don't: How We Think About the Future by Nick Foster. As he does, a voiceover says: "With Visual Intelligence, your world becomes savable. See something you like? Just ask me to save it for later." You can see the video attached to the following post on X: [This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be or has been removed.]
MacRumors also found a reference to the user setting up Visual Intelligence on these camera-equipped AirPods. If something is blocking the camera on your AirPods, like your hair, you might receive the following message: "To get the most accurate information about things in your environment, make sure AirPods are not covered." Reportedly, Apple is calling the upcoming AirPods with cameras "B790" internally. MacRumors says there are multiple references to B790 throughout macOS 26.7's Release Candidate, indicating the device is nearing launch.
It's not just the AirPods #
To that point, "B790" isn't the only codename referenced throughout macOS 26.7. According to MacRumors, there are many unreleased devices referenced in this Release Candidate, including Apple's long-rumored "Home Hub," "Pebble" (Apple's upcoming homeOS operating system)," iPhone 18, iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, iPhone Ultra (Apple's foldable smartphone), iPhone Air 2, M6 MacBook Pro, and AirPods Pro 4. There are also referenced codenames for upgraded devices without much context, such as a new iMac, MacBook Pro, iPad mini, and Beats.
This is a long list, and while none of these devices are confirmed, it does indicate that Apple is gearing up for a huge release schedule this year. Apple may indeed make an entrance into the smart home market with its own hub and operating system and potentially peripherals and accessories like security cameras. Again, we'll need to wait until next month to see what Apple announces, and even then, the company may take more time to reveal future products.