Apple tends to keep its upcoming hardware close to its chest. But beta software has a habit of giving things away before the company is ready. The latest iOS 27 developer beta appears to have done exactly that, with code strings pointing to a new camera-equipped wearable that could be the long-rumored AirPods Ultra.
App developer Sam Henri Gold spotted references in iOS 27 that describe an all-new product with cameras placed on either side of a user’s head. The discovery has set off the usual wave of speculation, with two possible products in the frame: a camera-equipped version of AirPods, or Apple’s first smart glasses.
The code does not mention a product name. But the internal hardware code B790 gives a strong clue. Apple’s AirPods Pro 3 carried the code B788, which puts B790 squarely in AirPods territory. A separate report has identified Apple’s smart glasses project as N50, a different code range entirely. That distinction matters when trying to figure out which product the iOS 27 references actually describe.
The cameras described in the code are not for photography. According to Joe Rossignol at MacRumors, the code appears to instruct Visual Intelligence on how to work with the mystery device, with references to landmarks, text, and known objects. The Eiffel Tower and a coffee mug are cited as examples. The idea is that a user could hold up an object, ask Siri about it, and get a useful answer back, all through the earbuds.
This fits into a broader push Apple has been making around on-device AI and ambient computing. Visual Intelligence, first introduced with the iPhone 16 series, lets the camera understand and respond to the world around you. Putting that capability into earbuds would extend it to situations where pulling out a phone is inconvenient, like when your hands are full or you just want a quick answer without breaking your stride.
The smart glasses question is worth addressing directly. Glasses like the Ray-Ban Meta use a single front-facing camera. The iOS 27 code specifically mentions two cameras, one on each side of the head, which matches AirPods geometry better than a standard glasses frame. Reports also suggest Apple’s smart glasses are still at least a year away from release, making iOS 28 a more logical home for that software support. AirPods Ultra, by contrast, is said to be further along in development.
A few things worth keeping in mind as the rumor builds:
- The product code B790 sits close to AirPods Pro 3’s B788, pointing toward earbuds rather than glasses
- Apple’s smart glasses project reportedly carries a different internal code, N50
- The cameras are designed for computer vision, not photo or video capture
- Visual Intelligence support in the code covers landmarks, text recognition, and object identification
- Smart glasses are not expected until late 2027 at the earliest, making iOS 27 an unlikely fit for that hardware
More details could surface soon. iOS 27 is expected to hit public beta in the coming weeks, which means more developers and researchers will get the chance to dig through the code. If Apple is further along with AirPods Ultra than it is with glasses, more software breadcrumbs are likely to appear before any official announcement.
For now, the evidence points toward camera-equipped AirPods arriving before Apple’s glasses do. Whether Apple calls them AirPods Ultra or something else entirely remains to be seen.
