Swarovski Optik, an Austrian company known for long-range optical instruments, celebrates its 75th anniversary by venturing into the realm of artificial intelligence. Earlier this year, they released the AX Visio, a groundbreaking AI-powered binocular co-developed with Australian designer Marc Newson. Touted as the world's first AI binoculars, the AX Visio uses advanced computer vision software capable of identifying over 9, 000 bird species, along with some mammals and insects, in real-time. The binoculars, priced at €4, 600 (over $5, 000), incorporate a built-in camera and onboard computer for identification tasks. Designed for wildlife enthusiasts, the AX Visio uses both image recognition and geolocation, facilitated by a GPS sensor, to narrow down species identification globally for birds and in Europe and North America for mammals and insects. Its greatest advantage is transmitting quick identifications, offering an engaging experience for observers without a wildlife guide. The binoculars boast a user-friendly design, including various settings for birds, mammals, butterflies, and dragonflies, a camera mode, and a simple mode-selection wheel.

Users can identify wildlife by holding the binoculars steady, focusing on the subject, and pressing a button to display identification results on the screen. During a field test at andBeyond Phinda Private Game Reserve, I rented the binoculars, appreciating their blend of high-tech capabilities with ease of use. Despite some occasional inaccuracies in identification—particularly with similar species—future firmware updates promise to enhance the device's accuracy. The binoculars also offer a "share discoveries" function, allowing users to share precise animal locations, providing an enriched viewing experience. Development of the AX Visio spanned five years, integrating high-quality optical performance with a 112-meter field of view at 1, 000 meters, 10x magnification, and 32-mm objective lenses. The binoculars’ camera captures 13-megapixel images and 1080p video, viewable via an app, which unfortunately doesn't retain species ID metadata upon download. Despite its non-professional grade image quality, the AX Visio simplifies the process of observing, identifying, and documenting wildlife, proving to be a valuable innovation in binocular technology.