Apple pushes forward on AI-powered smart glasses, camera AirPods and pendant

Apple is accelerating the development of three new wearable devices as part of a shift towards hardware powered by artificial intelligence, a category also being pursued by OpenAI and Meta Platforms. The company is ramping up work on smart glasses, a pendant that can be pinned to a shirt or worn as a necklace, and AirPods with expanded AI capabilities, according to people with knowledge of the plans, who asked not to be identified because those plans have not yet been announced. All three devices depend on a camera system and will be linked to Apple’s iPhone and built around the Siri digital assistant, which will rely on visual context to carry out actions, the insiders say. A spokesperson for Apple declined to comment. The AirPods and pendant are envisioned as simpler offerings, equipped with lower-resolution cameras designed to help the AI work, rather than for taking photos or videos. The glasses, meanwhile, will be more upscale and feature-rich. In an all-hands meeting with employees earlier this month, CEO Tim Cook hinted that the company would be pushing hard into AI devices, saying Apple was working on new “categories of products” enabled by AI. “We’re extremely excited about that,” he said. He added that the company was investing in new technology. “The world is changing fast,” he said. While iPhone sales remain robust, Apple is playing catch-up in AI. Revamping Siri has been a key challenge: upgrades to the voice assistant have been plagued by development snags, delaying roll-out. The company is preparing a version of the assistant for iOS 27, due later this year, that will feature a chatbot-like interface. Apple will rely on underlying models co-developed with Google. In the long run, AI is expected to change how consumers use phones – with more activities shifting to peripherals. Meta’s glasses have already become a hit, and OpenAI is developing a series of devices, including wearables, with the help of ex-Apple design chief Jony Ive and other former Apple executives. Apple has been trying to find a winning formula in this area. Its last major push into a new category, the pricey Vision Pro headset, did not resonate with consumers. The company is looking for a breakthrough with its accelerated push into wearable devices, aiming to keep users locked into the Apple ecosystem. The smart glasses are planned to be positioned as an advanced offering in the company’s AI hardware line-up, intended to compete with Meta’s camera-equipped eyewear. They would include a high-resolution camera capable of capturing photos and video. Apple has made significant progress in recent months on its glasses, code-named N50, and has recently distributed a broader set of prototypes within its hardware engineering division. The company is targeting the start of production as early as December this year, ahead of a public release in 2027. Like similar current offerings from Meta, the glasses will not include a display. Instead, the interface will rely on speakers, microphones and cameras, letting users make phone calls, access Siri, take actions based on surroundings, play music and take photos. The glasses will include two camera lenses: one for high-resolution imagery and another dedicated to computer vision, a technology similar to that used in the Vision Pro. The second sensor is designed to give the device environmental context, helping it more accurately interpret surroundings and measure the distance between objects. The goal is for the glasses to function as an all-day AI companion, capable of understanding what a user is seeing and doing in real time. Wearers could look at an object and ask what it is and get help with everyday tasks. That could mean inquiring about ingredients in a meal, for instance. Apple is also exploring more advanced uses. The glasses could read printed text and convert it into digital data – say, by adding the information on an event poster directly to a calendar. The device could also create context-aware reminders, such as prompting a user to grab an item when they are looking at the right shelf in a shop. For navigation, Siri could reference real-world landmarks, rather than just giving more generic instructions. The assistant could tell users to walk past a described building or vehicle before making a turn. Apple already has some visual AI capabilities, including the Visual Intelligence feature for analysing images on iPhones, but the technology would be more accessible. Of course, some users prefer not to wear something on their face, especially if they do not already wear glasses. Apple is aiming to serve that market with its other wearable AI devices: the pendant and camera-equipped AirPods. The pendant would essentially serve as an always-on camera for the smartphone that also includes a microphone for Siri input. Apple is working to allow users to wear the AirTag-sized pendant in two primary ways: with a clip that can attach to clothing or a necklace that can be placed through a hole inside the hardware. The AirPods, planned for as early as this year, have been in development for a while. The company has steadily added AI features to the product, including a new live-translation mode introduced last year. Apple aims to create smart glasses with an augmented reality display, giving users access to richer data and visuals. But a potential launch remains many years away.

Apple pushes forward on AI-powered smart glasses, camera AirPods and pendant

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}All three devices depend on a camera system and will be linked to Apple’s iPhone and built around the Siri digital assistant, insiders say

All three devices depend on a camera system and will be linked to Apple’s iPhone and built around the Siri digital assistant, insiders say