At the 2023 Apple event, the company unveiled its latest innovation: Live Translation for AirPods. It's like The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’s Babel fish, but wireless and not actually a fish.
This feature works with AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, as well as AirPods 4 (active noise cancellation models) and the 2026 AirPods Pro Max. You’ll need an iPhone 15 Pro or newer to make it all sing.
Setting up is a breeze: toggle Apple Intelligence on in iOS settings, choose your languages, and download them via the AirPods menu. All processing happens locally, keeping your conversations private and out of Apple’s servers.
To use Live Translation, you can tap the Live button in the Apple Translate app or press both stems of your AirPods at once. When someone speaks, you hear a translation through your earbuds; when you speak, they get a translated version on their device. It's like having a personal interpreter in every country.
While it’s a fantastic tool for traveling or casual conversations, remember AI isn’t perfect: the occasional odd translation might leave your interlocutor puzzled.
