Why Apple’s controversial new AirPods could get banned in offices and gyms

One of the hottest rumors circulating about Apple’s fall hardware event is that the company will update its hugely popular AirPods headphones with a version including cameras. Designed to work hand-in-hand with the tech giant’s Apple Intelligence AI system, these wearable devices will have a host of uses—a leaked video that confirmed the devices’ existence showed they could scan a book you’re interested in reading so you can access the text later on, for example. New information suggests that Apple may not be launching these devices until next year. And if this proves true, it may be a wise plan. Public sentiment around wearable camera devices like these rumored AirPods is polarized, with many online commentators reviling what they see as serious privacy threats. The thing is, it seems Apple is savvy to these risks, and the cameras won’t work in the way that critics are worried they will. When I posted my Inc. article about the unreleased devices to LinkedIn, responses to the story showed just how concerned people are. One commenter noted that camera AirPods could be a “legal nightmare waiting to happen inside companies.” If the cams “observe a list of clients and beam that pictur…