Apple’s Trio of AI Wearables Could Arrive as Soon as Next Year
It seems like every major tech company is getting into the AI wearable game, and Apple is joining in. According to reliable Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman, a trio of Apple wearables are in the works and will arrive between the end of this year and the end of next year.
The three devices reported are Glasses, Pin, and more advanced AirPods. All of these have been reported before in various stories, but Gurman’s latest update suggests how they will work in tandem with each other. This is exactly what I expected: in fact, I talked about it a few weeks ago in a story about all the reports about AI and wearable devices that were popping up.
Gemini could be the key piece
Apple’s recent deal with Google for Gemini to power its next wave of Apple AI has always suggested wearables to me, as Gemini’s camera and live modes are key to Google’s next wave of glasses arriving later this year.
Apple could use Gemini to take a leap forward in the live and contextual AI features that could power these new wearable devices.
Glasses: without display at the moment
AI glasses in Gurman’s report look more like existing glasses without a display Meta Ray-Banequipped with cameras, microphones and speakers. According to Gurman, two camera sensors will split the photo/video and sensory awareness tasks. The designs and frames may be made by Apple, which is what I expected, based on each of Apple’s other products. Apple also has its retail stores where you can try on these glasses and size them.
I would expect a similar feature set to what Meta and Google offer: recording, assistive features like audio guidance, translation, and captioning, and audio features that would make them work like glasses-shaped AirPods.
The glasses are expected next year, but if that’s the case, I’d expect Apple to give a preview of them this year, similar to what they did with Vision Pro and the original Apple Watch.
It’s always made sense for Apple to make glasses, given its excellence in photo and audio technology. And like I said beforeparts for glasses are already distributed in a variety of Apple devices, in a sense.
The AirPods’ infrared cameras could give them an interface that would allow them to work with glasses and pins.
AirPods: infrared cameras for gestures, maybe more
AirPods update expected later this year appears to focus on addition of infrared cameras At AirPods Pro 3 design. These cameras should work for gesture tracking, not for taking photos: it will probably work much like the Vision Pro’s close-range hand tracking does, and will probably work in the dark too.
If these arrive in 2026, they will be Apple’s first piece of the next wearable puzzle. They will most likely remove some of the AirPods’ AI features and allow some simple hand gestures that could control music or interact with workouts. They could also be a way to test hand tracking technology that could also land on glasses.
The Humane AI pin was a failure, but Apple could revive the idea as an iPhone accessory.
A pin too, perhaps?
Gurman points out that a camera-compatible AI pin is also in the works, also with a 2027 release… although it’s also possible that pin won’t happen at all. This reflects a relationship from The Information earlier this year.
Most other tech companies are moving into pendants and pins latelyjudging by the ads made at CES in January. The pins might be more versatile to wear, and maybe they provide a bit of a protection in case not everyone likes the idea of glasses. Maybe Apple doesn’t make all three. Or maybe they do. The observation seems less certain about the arrival of the pin’s than about glasses and the new AirPods. Apple’s pin clearly looks like an iPhone accessory rather than an independent device like the broken one Human AI Pinfocusing on camera and audio assist features (and perhaps a hand tracking interface).
None of these devices would have a screen, but eventually Apple could find a way to combine a less expensive Vision headset in a more glasses-like form with these types of smaller wearable devices. Or maybe Apple is first looking for ways to explore new interfaces on wearable devices before finding a new wave of wearable displays beyond that. VisionPro.
There’s a good chance we won’t hear any of this until at least Apple’s WWDC developer conference in June, but I’m now extremely curious to what extent these plans might emerge at that time… given that Google could also be gearing up. its range of glasses soon too, with Google I/O on deck for the end of May.
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
