Apple’s work on AirPods with built-in cameras has “entered a phase where prototypes feature a near-final design and capabilities,” according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.
He says both the right and left earbuds will include a camera, but not for recording videos or taking photos. Instead, they’ll be “the eyes” of Siri to capture the environment around an AirPods user in low resolution.
From Gurman’s report: The idea is to let users ask questions about an item they might be looking at. For instance, they could be facing food ingredients and ask what they should cook for dinner. It’s a similar experience to what someone gets from uploading photos in AI services like OpenAI’s ChatGPT or the iPhone’s own Visual Intelligence function.
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 AirPods with cameras could be dubbed the “AirPods Ultra.” The computer-vision cameras will purportedly be used to feed Visual Intelligence data to Siri.
Visual Intelligence is a feature on newer iPhones, iPads, and Macs that uses the camera to identify and provide information about objects, text, and places around you.
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