When it announced the AirPods Pro 3 back in September, Apple also introduced Live Translation for them as well as the AirPods 4 with ANC and AirPods Pro 2. The feature works when the AirPods in question are paired with an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone running iOS 26 and later.
The feature supported English (UK and US), French, German, Portuguese (Brazil), and Spanish at launch, but wasn’t available in the EU. That, however, will change very soon. Today Apple has announced that Live Translation is coming to the EU “next month”, so in December.
The feature was delayed for EU users “due to the additional engineering work needed to comply with the requirements of the Digital Markets Act”, Apple says. Live Translation now works in English, French, German, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional Mandarin), Japanese, and Korean.
It provides real-time translations while protecting your privacy with on-device processing. When both people talking in different languages are using AirPods with the feature enabled on an iPhone, ANC helps lower the other person’s voice, making it easier to focus on the translation while keeping the conversation more natural sounding.
If the person you’re trying to talk to doesn’t have AirPods, you can display a live transcription of the other person’s language on your iPhone. Live Translation is also integrated into Messages, FaceTime, and the Phone app, “enabling seamless translation” whether you’re texting or speaking.
