Apple is set to launch AirPods equipped with cameras as early as September. Google also unveiled a fitness smart band on Tuesday (local time). Wearable devices, which once competed fiercely before going quiet, are poised for renewed competition as they integrate with artificial intelligence (AI).
Bloomberg reported that Apple is testing camera-equipped AirPods in the final development stage just before mass production.
The camera will be linked with Apple's voice assistant "Siri." While it lacks photo or video recording capabilities, it will gather visual information to assist users in making decisions. For example, if a user wearing the AirPods looks at food ingredients and asks what dish would be appropriate, Siri will suggest cooking options based on the available ingredients. Instead of a display, information can be checked through the "Google Health" app on a smartphone.
Apple's "camera AirPods" are seen as a decisive move in the next-generation device competition against AI platform companies. Apple is also developing AI-powered smart glasses and a camera-equipped pendant (necklace accessory). Meta, which emphasized the metaverse business early on, is leading the smart glasses market. Both Apple and Meta are adopting strategies that prioritize visual elements, the recent trend in the wearable device market.
Google is also accelerating its wearable competition, but its strategy is the opposite. On the same day, Google launched "Fitbit Ace," a smart wristband without a display. Without a screen, the device was designed to be ultra-small and ultra-light, weighing just 5.2 grams. Battery performance has been enhanced so that a single charge lasts up to seven days. It is also equipped with sensors to measure heart rate and a motor for silent notifications.
Fitbit Ace is the first product released since the Fitbit acquisition five years ago. Fitbit was founded in 2007 by Korean-American James Park and was acquired by Google in 2021 for $2.1 billion (about 3 trillion won). Google expects Fitbit Ace to catch up with "Whoop," the leading player in the smart wristband market. The price is also considered reasonable at $99.99 (about 145,000 won). Google emphasized, "It is the smallest wearable tracking device ever released," adding, "Thanks to its thin and light design, it is so comfortable that you even forget you are wearing it."
OpenAI has also chosen voice over vision. After acquiring "io," a startup founded by Jony Ive, who previously led Apple's design, for $6.5 billion last year, the company is preparing a voice AI device. Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at TF International Securities, said on social media last month that OpenAI is developing smartphone processors with MediaTek and Qualcomm to create an AI agent phone.
