Leaked video shows Apple's camera-equipped AirPods identifying a book by sight

First look: Apple is known to be developing AirPods with built-in cameras that apparently would let Siri and Visual Intelligence see what users see. The cameras wouldn't just offer traditional photo or video capture, they'd also support AI-powered recognition and recall.

The macOS Tahoe 26.7 release candidate includes code and a brief video referencing an unreleased product called B790. The short demonstration video, found by MacRumors, shows a user holding up a book so the AirPods camera can read its title. The camera appears to recognize the text, and the voiceover describes the feature as a way to save information from the real world.

"With Visual Intelligence, your world becomes savable. See something you like? Just ask me to save it for later," the voiceover says.

The references suggest the cameras are built to work with Visual Intelligence rather than function as standard photo or video cameras. Siri could use the visual input to answer questions about nearby objects and save information a user wants to recall later.

The AirPods could give Siri visual context without requiring users to pull out an iPhone, expanding on Apple's existing Visual Intelligence features, which currently depend largely on the iPhone's camera and screen.

Apple's software also includes a warning for situations in which the AirPods' cameras are blocked. The alert tells users to keep the AirPods uncovered so the cameras can provide the most accurate information about their surroundings, suggesting Apple expects the cameras to need an unobstructed view of the wearer's environment.

The B790 codename has surfaced before: Mark Gurman previously reported that Apple was developing the product and said it could arrive as soon as September.

If Apple introduces the device then, it could appear at the company's upcoming iPhone launch event, where we expect to see the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and a foldable iPhone Ultra.

The macOS Tahoe 26.7 release candidate contains several references to B790, along with mentions of other unreleased Apple hardware. Apple has not announced the camera-equipped AirPods or confirmed a launch date.

However, Apple has not publicly detailed the hardware design, image-processing approach or privacy controls for the device. Those questions matter for a camera system designed to be worn in public and used outward for everyday tasks.