Apple’s new live translation feature for AirPods won’t be available in the EU at launch

One of the headlining features of Apple’s new AirPods Pro 3 was the ability to translate incoming audio in real time, but it seems the feature won’t work in the European Union at launch.

On its official page detailing the features available on iOS 26, the company said EU residents or those with EU Apple IDs won’t be able to use live translation, which is powered by Apple Intelligence and will also be coming to AirPods 4 and AirPods Pro 2.

According to Apple, the delay is due to interoperability requirements of the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The company noted that other legal requirements around user data protection were not a factor here.

Apple had to delay the release of some AI features in the EU due to these regulations last year, with users in the EU getting access to some features only in March 2025.

Updated after publication to add Apple’s comment.