When Apple announced Live Translation at WWDC25, it highlighted use cases like FaceTime, phone calls, and messages. But one major use case was missing: real-world conversations. As it turns out, that was in the works too.
New image hints at new AirPods gesture
In today’s iOS 26 developer beta 6, we spotted a new system asset that appears to depict a gesture triggered by pressing both AirPods stems at once.
The image displays text in English, Portuguese, French, and German, and it is associated with the Translate app. For now, we can confirm it’s associated specifically with the AirPods Pro (2nd generation) and AirPods (4th generation).
Real-world live translation is right up the wearable wheelhouse
While Apple didn’t mention real-world translation for AirPods during the WWDC25 keynote, Bloomberg had reported earlier in the year that this feature was in the works. This feels like a natural extension of the Live Translation features already announced for FaceTime, Messages, and Phone, and it is also a strong use case for wearables in general, something we’ve already seen with devices like the Meta Ray-Bans.
At this point, it’s unclear which iPhones will support the new gesture, as it is very unlikely that the feature will run entirely on the AirPods. But it’s reasonable to assume the cutoff will align with Apple’s official hardware requirements for other Live Translation features:
Live Translation in Messages is available in Chinese (Simplified), English (UK, US), French (France), German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil) and Spanish (Spain) when Apple Intelligence is enabled on a compatible iPhone, iPad or Mac, as well as on Apple Watch Series 9 and later and Apple Watch Ultra 2 when paired with an Apple Intelligence–enabled iPhone.
Live Translation in Phone and FaceTime is available for one-to-one calls in English (UK, US), French (France), German, Portuguese (Brazil) and Spanish (Spain) when Apple Intelligence is enabled on a compatible iPhone, iPad or Mac.
Bit of speculation
Given the need of an even lower latency for real-world interactons, it is possible that this feature may be exclusive to the iPhone 17 lineup, which could help explain why Apple has kept it under wraps until now.
Speculation aside, what we do know is that Apple appears to be prepping the release of a live translation feature associated with AirPods, and that’s exciting enough, especially for anyone living abroad or traveling somewhere the language is unfamiliar.
Could you see yourself using AirPods for live translation? Let us know in the comments.
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