AirPods Live Translation won't be available in the EU, Apple says

As of now, some users in the European Union won't get Apple's flashiest new AirPods feature.

At its major event on Tuesday, Apple unveiled Live Translation — which does exactly what it sounds like — debuting on the AirPods Pro 3 and rolling out to AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 with ANC. But EU-based users are being left out, at least for now, for reasons that remain unclear.

Apple noted this on a feature availability page. The page read, "Live Translation with AirPods is not available if you are in the EU and your Apple Account Country or Region is also in the EU."

That means two things have to be true for the restriction to apply: your Apple account must be registered in the EU, and you must be physically located there.

Apple hasn't explained why Live Translation isn’t launching in the region, but the most likely culprit is a regulatory hurdle.

Speculated the Apple-focused tech site MacRumors:

"In particular, the EU's Artificial Intelligence Act and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) both impose strict requirements for how speech and translation services are offered. Regulators may want to study how Live Translation works, and how that impacts privacy, consent, data-flows, and user rights."

The EU has stricter regulations on tech than in other areas. Apple Intelligence features, for instance, were blocked in the EU at launch, but eventually, that changed. It stands to reason that EU users will someday get access to Live Translation — just not yet.