Apple Stops Work on Camera-Equipped Apple Watch Planned for 2027

Apple is no longer planning to release an Apple Watch that includes a camera, reports Bloomberg. Apple was developing Apple Watch and Apple Watch Ultra models that had a camera to view the wearer's surrounding environment, but work on those projects ended this week.

The camera in the Apple Watch would not have been used for features like FaceTime or snapping photos, but instead would have allowed Apple Watch owners to get information about objects and places near them.

An Apple Watch might have been able to do things like provide hours when pointed at a restaurant or store, identify a plant, describe an object, or offer language translations. The wearable camera functionality would have worked much like Visual Intelligence, an AI iPhone feature that lets users point their camera at something to get more information.

Apple planned to release the camera-equipped Apple Watch models in 2027, but the plans are off. It's possible Apple could bring the technology back in the future, and it's not known why development ended.

Though Apple is no longer planning for an Apple Watch with a camera, it's still developing AirPods with tiny cameras inside. The AirPods cameras may be infrared sensors to enable features like enhanced spatial audio, in-air gesture control, and AI capabilities.