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The long-rumored AirPods Ultra may already be in the later stages of development, meaning their release might be sooner than we initially thought. According to sources speaking to Bloomberg, development has now entered a phase featuring prototypes with "near-final design and capabilities."
Sources say that testers within Apple are actively using prototypes of the new AirPods, as part of what's known as design validation testing (DVT). This is the final stage of the development phase, and once complete Apple will start a production validation test (PVT). That's when the sample units of the final design are built, ahead of full-scale mass production.
What we know about AirPods Ultra
The AirPods Ultra will reportedly have a design that's siimilar to the AirPods Pro 3 but with a number of important enhancements. For one, these AirPods are supposed to be built around Siri and AI, offering the kind of AI-enhanced hardware we've started seeing from the likes of Meta and others.
The AirPods Ultra aren't designed for taking photos or shooting video; they're designed to help Siri see the world and are only capable of capturing "visual information in low resolution." Potential AirPods Ultra features include:
- A version of Visual Intelligence: that lets you ask Siri questions based on your surroundings. The example cited includes looking at the contents of your fridge and suggesting dinner options based on the ingredients within.
- Visual reminders: The AirPods Ultra can remind you about tasks or activities based on what it sees around you, such as picking something up at the store when you see it on the shelf.
- Enhanced turn-by-turn directions: The AirPods Ultra use external landmarks to help you navigate through unfamiliar areas with voice prompts ties to what the earbuds see.
- Built -in LED: Bloomberg's report mentions a small LED light that indicates whenever the AirPods Ultra are recording and communicating with the cloud. This would be a privacy feature.
Sadly, while early rumors suggested these cameras would offer gesture controls, this claim has been shot down multiple times. According to Mark Gurman, the technology to fit gesture controls into a pair of AirPods doesn't exist yet
It's all up to Siri
The big question is when will the AirPods Ultra will actually launch? According to Bloomberg, Apple had hoped to put the AirPods on sale during the first half of this year, but the launch was postponed due to the high-profile delays to Siri's AI-overhaul.
Reports tell us similar delays have affected Apple's HomePad smart display, which was built on the assumption that Siri would be ready in time. Sadly, the emphasis on AI was so encompassing that releasing the display without Siri 2.0 wasn't worth it. No doubt the rumored AI glasses and camera pendant are similarly affected by this.
Siri is expected to debut in September, powered by Google Gemini, alongside iOS 27 and iPhone 18 Pro. But so far, that hasn't been confirmed by Apple, and likely won't be until WWDC 2026 at the earliest. Still, even if the Siri upgrade does arrive by the end of the year, there's no telling Apple will start rushing out AI-centric devices to capitalize on that. Given the issues it's had upgrading Siri, Apple may want to give the AI the time it needs to adjust to widespread daily use by the general public.
But, assuming the development process is as far along as this report claims, we could be seeing the AirPods Ultra arrive pretty soon. It may just be down to what Apple does with Siri.
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