Kids are swapping AirPods and using text-to-speech to "talk" in class without being caught

What you need to know

• A TikTok video is showing us all how to talk without being caught.
• They're using AirPods and text-to-speech to communicate.
• Now I feel old and dumb.

Our very own Rene Ritchie just shared a TikTok video in the iMore Slack channel and now I feel both old and decidedly dumb at the same time. See, it turns out enterprising kids are sharing AirPods and then using text-to-speech to allow them to "talk" without being caught.

The obvious use case here is keeping up with your crew during class. Because nobody pays attention when their teacher is talking, right? That's reserved for squares like me!

The theory is actually one that is ingenious if you think about it. You swap an AirPod with your friend and then use text-to-speech to communicate with them. The video shows someone using Google Translate, but any app could presumably be used just fine. And the results should be the same regardless.

Now I'm wondering where else we could make use of this. Like those boring three-hour meetings at work. Or on an airplane when you just want that baby to stop crying but feel bad for verbalizing it. Or, you know. You could just text each other like us oldies.

Shout out with your ideas in the comments!