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Apple has accidentally leaked footage of what appear to be its widely rumoured camera-equipped AirPods.
The team from MacRumors discovered a video of the alleged device in the macOS Tahoe 26.7 Release Candidate.
The video is just 13 seconds long and was shared on X by MacRumors analyst Aaron Perris.
'Here is your first look at AirPods with Cameras in action using Visual Intelligence. This video file came from macOS 26.7 RC,' he said.
In the video, a man can be seen wearing a pair of AirPods and holding a book up to his face.
A voiceover says: 'With Visual Intelligence, your world becomes saveable. See something you like? Just ask me to save it for later.'
The leak has taken many fans by surprise, with one calling it 'insane'.
Another joked: 'Someone is getting fired.'
In the video, a man can be seen wearing a pair of AirPods and holding a book up to his face
MacRumors discovered the video in the macOS Tahoe 26.7 Release Candidate, with the AirPods referred to by the codename B790.
'Confusingly, these are not the camera-equipped AirPods rumored for 2027 because those have a B798 codename, but are a "separate camera AirPods project" that could come out as soon as September,' MacRumors explained.
'Code specifically mentions an image stream for the device: "B790 start image stream failed for left bud".'
While details on the AirPods remain sparse, MacRumors claims they contain a camera that feeds information to Visual Intelligence – a tool which can answer questions about your surroundings, whether it's a place, object or animal.
This tool is already available on iPhone, with users able to point their phone camera at objects to answer questions about them.
However, having these cameras built into the AirPods would make this process hands-free.
'The camera on the AirPods will feed information to Visual Intelligence, and will be able to answer questions about the wearer's surroundings and log information,' MacRumors explained.
'There is a direct reference to setting up Visual Intelligence on the AirPods.
While details on the AirPods remain sparse, MacRumors claims they contain a camera that feeds information to a tool that can answer questions about your surroundings
'If hair is covering the AirPods up, you'll receive an alert. "To get the most accurate information about things in your environment, make sure AirPods are not covered," it says.'
Further information, including a launch date and price, remain unclear at this stage.
However, the leak has already sent social media into a frenzy.
On X, one user said: 'I don't see much point in having cameras in AirPods, but as usual, Apple will probably implement them in such a way that soon every other manufacturer will start putting cameras in their earbuds too.'
Another added: 'I bet they don't expose the actual images and pipe everything through Visual Intelligence.
'Helps with privacy concerns (AirPods in locker room case) and seems very Apple-like to just not give you the pictures if they're going to be poor quality.'
And one joked: 'Apple put eyes on the thing we bought for our ears.'
The Daily Mail has contacted Apple for comment.