Apple appears to have accidentally confirmed the existence of an unreleased new model of its AirPods earphones with built-in cameras, with a video showing the long-rumoured device appearing in beta code released by the tech giant on Tuesday.

The video, first discovered by MacRumors in the release candidate for Apple's desktop software macOS Tahoe 26.7, appears to show a man wearing AirPods Pro earphones with slightly thicker stems than their predecessors.

He holds up a book, seemingly so cameras in his AirPods can read the book's title, while a voiceover says the words, "With Visual Intelligence, your world becomes savable. See something you like? Just ask me to save it for later."

Visual Intelligence is part of Apple's artificial intelligence software, and allows users to ask the company's personal assistant Siri about the world around them.

Siri is set to receive a major AI overhaul in September with the public release of Apple's next major operating system updates.

Users of the new AirPods will supposedly receive an alert from Siri if hair or another object is blocking the view of the cameras on the new earphones.

"To get the most accurate information about things in your environment, make sure AirPods are not covered," the alert reportedly states.

It is unclear if camera-equipped AirPods would allow users to record images and video files for later viewing.

If enabled, image capture could raise privacy concerns that are already being heightened by the rise of smart glasses, which Apple is also reportedly developing.

AI-focused 'smart hearables' on the rise

Camera-equipped AirPods have been rumoured for months, and codenames for at least two different models reportedly appear in Apple's iOS 27 beta software for iPhones.

While some have speculated Apple could release its new camera-equipped AirPods as soon as September, Bloomberg reported the company plans to release them in 2027 due to recent "supply chain and software snags".

More than 1.2 million smart hearables were sold in Australia in the first half of 2026, up 16 per cent on the previous year, according to local analyst firm Telsyte.

"Close to half (48 per cent) of users wear their devices daily and more than a quarter use voice features every day, making hearables a natural companion to on-device AI," the company said in a report released on Wednesday.

Apple's AirPods Pro 3 last year introduced a live translation feature enabled by AI models running locally on a user's connected iPhone.

Telsyte senior analyst Alvin Lee said, "AI is moving from something Australians open to something they wear."

Apple's other unreleased products

The macOS Tahoe 26.7 release candidate Apple shared with developers earlier this week reportedly contained references to other unreleased products.

Among them were supposedly two versions of a home hub smart display, codenamed "J490: HomeAccessory17,1" and "J491: HomeAccessory17,2".

Reports have previously suggested Apple has developed several smart displays to integrate with its new AI version of Siri and compete with the likes of Google's Nest Hub and Amazon's Echo Show.

An unreleased product codenamed "J595: HomeAccessory17,3" also reportedly appeared in Apple's beta code, which some industry figures believe may be a rumoured home hub with an iPad-like display which moves on a swiveling mechanical arm.

There was also "J229Architecture" which some have speculated could be a security camera Apple has reportedly developed, as well as a headset codenamed "N109" which may be a new version of Apple's Vision Pro.

New versions of current Apple products also reportedly appeared in the beta code, including an updated HomePod mini, AirPods Pro 4, AirPods 5, and iPad mini, as well as new MacBook Pro and iMac computers.

On the iPhone front, the code reportedly referred to iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max models, which are expected to be released in September alongside Apple's long-rumoured first foldable iPhone.

A base model iPhone 18 and a second-generation iPhone Air were also reportedly listed, although those devices are not expected to be released until early 2027.