Apple Plans Camera-Equipped AirPods and Second-Generation Foldable iPhone for 2027

Apple is moving forward with developing AirPods equipped with a camera, targeting a 2027 launch. The report comes from Mark Gurman, a prominent journalist at Bloomberg, who notes that the schedule is currently on track according to his sources.

The camera-equipped AirPods are designed with the camera attached to the stem of the earbud itself. Additionally, an indicator light that illuminates when data is uploaded to the cloud is expected to be included. This structure will enable the next-generation Siri to provide users' surrounding environment with "visual context." From a development standpoint, beta testing for iOS 27, scheduled for release this fall, is underway, while the new AirPods are already undergoing internal testing with an eye toward integration with iOS 28, the update planned for next year.

This move demonstrates that Apple is accelerating its hardware strategy centered on artificial intelligence. The company recently announced numerous AI features for its platforms at this year's WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference). The camera-equipped AirPods represent an extension of this strategy and serve as a crucial step in evolving Siri from a voice assistant into an "artificial intelligence device that recognizes the surrounding world."

Looking across the industry, Meta's success with integrating cameras into its Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses and connecting them with AI features provides context for this move. For Apple, adding cameras to AirPods represents an effort to catch up in the competitive space of expanding AI experiences through wearable devices. By combining a camera and AI in a location worn constantly near the ear, there is potential for a new interface that enables information retrieval, translation, and environmental awareness in a hands-free and natural manner.

Additionally, Gurman's report mentions a second-generation foldable iPhone, which is also rumored for a 2027 launch. Reports on a first-generation foldable iPhone have already surfaced, suggesting that Apple is positioning itself to deliberately diversify its form factors.

The 2027 timeline is still more than two years away, and there is ample possibility that product specifications and launch plans could change. Going forward, the emergence of actual prototypes and specific information regarding mass production will be key in assessing the credibility of these reports.