Let Siri look at the same scene you're seeing, then reason over it.
Apple is quietly redefining the boundary between the human body and the digital mind, building a constellation of wearable sensors — camera-equipped earbuds, smart glasses, and AI pendants — designed to let artificial intelligence perceive the world as we do. By embedding vision into the objects people wear closest to themselves, the company is not merely adding features but proposing a new relationship between attention and technology. The roadmap, stretching from late 2027 through 2028, suggests Apple believes the next frontier of computing is not the screen we hold, but the world we already inhabit.
- Apple's camera AirPods, delayed from 2026 to late 2027, represent a quiet but significant bet that the ear — not the hand — becomes the next interface for AI.
- The simultaneous development of smart glasses, an AI pendant, and foldable iPhones signals a company racing to surround users with sensors before rivals establish the category.
- Each new device depends on a relentless chip progression — from the A20 Pro this year to a 1.4-nanometer A22 Pro by 2028 — meaning the hardware ambition is only as credible as the silicon beneath it.
- Foldables have crossed from experiment to committed product line, with a second-generation model already planned, signaling Apple treats the form factor as a permanent pillar rather than a curiosity.
- The entire strategy lands on a single wager: that AI is most useful not when it processes words, but when it can see and reason about the physical world users already move through.
Apple is developing camera-equipped AirPods, code-named B798, that would allow Siri to understand the world visually rather than just verbally. Embedded in the stems, the cameras won't record video — they'll feed real-time visual context to the assistant, letting it answer questions about what a user is actually looking at. Small indicator lights will signal when data is being processed, a nod to privacy for those nearby. The launch, originally planned for 2026, has slipped to late 2027.
These earbuds are one node in a broader sensor network Apple is assembling around the human body. The company is also developing smart glasses under the code name N50, capable of photography and video, targeting the same late-2027 window. An AI pendant with a clip-on camera has been explored as yet another way to embed computer vision into daily life without requiring a phone in hand. The vision — Apple calls it Visual Intelligence — is that Siri and related tools will work best when surrounded by eyes.
Underpinning all of it is an aggressive chip roadmap. This year's iPhone 18 Pro and the first foldable iPhone will run on the A20 Pro. A base A20 follows for standard models, then a 2-nanometer A21 arrives in 2027 for the second-generation foldable and the 20th-anniversary iPhones — devices expected to feature near-edge-to-edge displays with curved glass sides. By 2028, a 1.4-nanometer A22 Pro is planned, with TSMC as the primary partner and Intel under consideration.
Foldable iPhones have moved from novelty to committed category, with a second-generation model planned roughly a year after the first. The regularity of that cadence matters as much as the devices themselves. Taken together, Apple's roadmap through 2028 amounts to its most deliberate effort yet to make artificial intelligence not a feature layered onto existing products, but the organizing principle of an entirely new product line — one worn on the body, tuned to the physical world.
Apple is building a new class of devices around a simple idea: let your earbuds see what you see. The company is developing camera-equipped AirPods, code-named B798, that will act as visual sensors for Siri, allowing the voice assistant to understand context by analyzing the world around you rather than just processing your words. These earbuds are now headed for a late-2027 launch, delayed from an original 2026 target, according to reporting from people with knowledge of the plans.
The cameras embedded in the stems won't function like tiny video recorders. Instead, they'll feed visual information directly to Siri, which can then reason about what it sees. Imagine standing in your kitchen looking at a pile of ingredients and asking what you could cook—Siri would answer based on what the cameras observe, not a typed list. The company is calling this broader concept Visual Intelligence, and it's already woven into software plans for 2027. Apple is also testing how these sensors could power contextual reminders or improve walking directions by tying navigation to what the cameras recognize in real time. The earbuds will look largely like today's AirPods Pro, with the addition of stem-mounted cameras and small external lights that illuminate when data is being transmitted for processing—a privacy signal for people nearby.
These camera AirPods are just one piece of a much larger hardware strategy centered on AI. Apple is simultaneously developing its first smart glasses, code-named N50, with a target launch as early as late 2027. These glasses will carry more advanced cameras capable of both photography and video, feeding visual data into Apple's AI systems. The company has also explored an AI pendant with an onboard camera that clips to clothing or hangs as a necklace, another way to embed computer vision into daily life without requiring users to hold a phone. Together, these devices are meant to surround users with sensors that hand off to Siri and other AI tools as needed.
Supporting this hardware ambition is a complete reworking of Apple's chip roadmap. This year's iPhone 18 Pro models and the first foldable iPhone will use the A20 Pro processor, internally called Borneo. Next year's standard iPhone 18 will step down to a base A20 chip named Banda. But in 2027, Apple plans to shift its most important devices—the second-generation foldable and the 20th-anniversary iPhones—to a 2-nanometer A21 chip code-named Naxos. Those anniversary models, labeled V73 and V74 internally, are expected to arrive at year's end with nearly edge-to-edge displays and curved glass wrapping around the sides. They'll arrive alongside iOS 28, the next major iPhone software update, which Apple is already testing.
Foldable phones are no longer an experiment. Apple's first foldable iPhone is on track for a September debut, with a second-generation model following roughly a year later. That regular cadence signals the company views foldables as an ongoing category, not a one-off novelty. The chip roadmap extends even further: a follow-on to the standard iPhone 18 is already in development with a standard A21 processor called Nimos, and by 2028 Apple plans to move its high-end phones to an A22 Pro built on a 1.4-nanometer process. The company will primarily work with TSMC on that chip but is also considering Intel, a partnership that underscores how central these AI-focused devices have become to Apple's entire product strategy.
What emerges from this roadmap is perhaps Apple's most aggressive hardware push into artificial intelligence to date. The company is not simply adding AI features to existing products—it's redesigning how people interact with their devices by embedding cameras and sensors into the objects they wear closest to their bodies. By 2028, when the A22 Pro arrives, Apple will have fundamentally reshaped its product line around the idea that AI works best when it can see and understand the physical world around you.
Notable Quotes
Someone looking at a pile of ingredients on the counter could ask what to make, and Siri would answer based on what the cameras see instead of a typed list.— Apple's Visual Intelligence concept
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why cameras in AirPods specifically? Why not just use the phone in your pocket?
Because your phone is in your pocket. Your earbuds are at ear level, positioned to see what your eyes see. That proximity matters for context. Siri can understand what you're actually looking at in real time.
And the light that turns on when data is being sent—that's a privacy feature?
Exactly. It's a signal to people around you that the earbuds are actively transmitting visual information. Apple is essentially saying: we know this is sensitive, so we're making it visible.
The roadmap mentions an AI pendant too. That seems redundant with the AirPods.
Not quite. A pendant hangs at chest level and could capture different angles. It's another sensor in the ecosystem. The idea is to give users options for where they want visual intelligence positioned on their body.
Why push foldables so hard if they're still relatively niche?
Because they're the only form factor that can handle the processing load Apple is planning. A foldable gives you a larger screen for AI to work with, and the internal space for the chips that power Visual Intelligence.
The chip progression—Borneo to Naxos to the A22 Pro—that's a pretty aggressive timeline.
It has to be. These AI features require enormous computational power on the device itself. Apple isn't sending your visual data to the cloud. It's processing it locally, which means the chips need to get much faster, much smaller, very quickly.
What happens if these products don't ship on schedule?
Then the whole roadmap slips. The camera AirPods are already delayed from 2026 to 2027. If they slip again, everything downstream gets pushed. That's why the company is moving them into advanced development now.