AirPods’ Secret Feature: iOS 26 Beta Reveals Real-Time Translation with a Pinch

At WWDC 2025, Apple announced its real-time translation feature, highlighting its integration with FaceTime, the Phone app, and Messages. While the company did not showcase live, real-world conversations, it appears that support for real-world real-time translation is also on the horizon.

In the newly released iOS 26 Beta 6, Apple has added system assets related to AirPods, depicting how users can activate real-time translation by simultaneously pressing the stems of both earbuds.

The image assets display languages including English, Portuguese, French, and German, and are linked to the Translate app. According to 9to5Mac, this functionality is likely intended for the AirPods Pro 2 and the upcoming AirPods 4.

It should be noted that Apple made no mention of AirPods-related real-time translation at WWDC 2025. However, Bloomberg’s well-known editor Mark Gurman mentioned the feature in his Power On newsletter, describing it as an extension of the real-time translation capabilities in FaceTime, Phone, and Messages.

This feature will require Apple’s AI services to function, meaning there are hardware prerequisites. AirPods alone cannot perform translations — they must be paired with an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, which will handle the translation process and stream the results to the AirPods.

Any iPhone, iPad, or Mac supporting Apple Intelligence will be compatible. Additionally, an Apple Intelligence–enabled iPhone can pair with an Apple Watch Series 9 or later, or an Apple Watch Ultra 2, to enable real-time translation in Messages. Supported languages include Simplified Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Spanish.

Using real-time translation in real-world situations demands greater processing power and lower latency. 9to5Mac speculates that the feature may be exclusive to the iPhone 17 series when paired with the AirPods Pro 2 or AirPods 4 — potentially explaining Apple’s silence on the matter so far.

If Apple delivers real-time translation through AirPods, it could significantly enhance cross-language communication. Still, the true measure of its value will depend on how well it performs in real-world use.

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