Apple has introduced the AirPods Pro 3, featuring a new Live Translation capability. This feature will also be available via a software update for AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation, according to Apple.
The Live Translation feature relies on the connected iPhone to function, requiring an iPhone 15 Pro or newer running iOS 26. This is because the translation is powered by Apple Intelligence. Therefore, even users with the new AirPods Pro 3 need a compatible iPhone to utilize this feature.
At launch, Live Translation supports English, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish. Apple plans to expand language support later this year to include Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Simplified Chinese.
The translation mode is activated by pressing the stems of both AirPods simultaneously. The microphones then listen for foreign-language speech, translate it, and play the translation back through the headphones.
In situations where only one participant has AirPods with the feature, the conversation becomes one-sided. To address this, Apple offers a solution where a transcript of the translated speech is displayed on the iPhone screen, allowing the other person to read the response in their native language.
