Apple's camera-equipped earbuds have reached DVT, or design validation testing, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. DVT is the stage where engineers use near-final hardware in real-world conditions every day, two steps before the product ships and apparently several steps before Apple tells anyone about it.
Each earbud has a camera in the stem. The cameras capture low-resolution visuals of your surroundings and feed that information to Siri. They don't record photos or videos you can keep. A small LED on each earbud lights up whenever visual data is being sent to Apple's servers, so anyone nearby can see when the cameras are active.
You'll be able to point at ingredients on your counter and ask Siri what to cook, get turn-by-turn directions that reference the actual building in front of you rather than just a street name, and get reminders triggered by something the camera sees. It works the same way uploading a photo to ChatGPT works today, except your hands stay free and the camera's always with you.
Apple originally targeted a first-half 2026 launch. That date moved because the upgraded version of Siri wasn't ready, which is starting to feel like Groundhog Day for anyone following Apple's AI roadmap. The new Siri, built on Google Gemini foundation models, is now on track to ship in September with iOS 27, and the earbuds are expected to follow in that same fall window.
The next stage after DVT is PVT, or production validation testing, where suppliers build early mass-production units to test the assembly process at scale. DVT typically runs three to six months, PVT another two to four after that.
Pricing is expected to land above the current AirPods Pro 3, which sell for $249. The branding is still unconfirmed, with AirPods Ultra and AirPods Pro 3 with Cameras both under consideration.