Meta aims to incorporate facial recognition into its smart glasses, while its biggest critics remain distracted a report from the new York Times. In an internal document reviewed by many timesMeta says it will launch the feature “during a dynamic political environment where many of the civil society groups we expect to attack us will focus their resources on other concerns.”
The document dates back to last May and reportedly describes the new “Name Tags” feature that will allow smart glasses wearers to identify people using the Meta’s built-in AI assistant. the new York Times Meta is reported to have initially planned to launch the feature during a conference for the blind before releasing it more widely, but this was never accomplished. Meta, which makes smart glasses with Ray-Ban and Oakley, is reportedly planning to launch the feature this year.
Sources say many times That facial recognition technology won’t allow people to recognize everyone on sight. Instead, Meta is reportedly considering using the feature to trace people the wearer has connected with on one of Meta’s platforms. According to it, “people who may not be known to the user but who have a public account on a meta site like Instagram are also being identified.” the new York Times.
We’ve already seen what the future of facial recognition could look like on Meta Glass. In 2024, two Harvard students developed a project that allows those wearing Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses to recognize people’s faces and use public databases to find names, addresses, phone numbers, and relatives.
Features that recognize someone by face can be helpful for people who are blind or have low vision, but linking them to broader social networks or databases can pose serious security risks. A company called Envision partnered with Solos to launch a pair of glasses that use AI to help blind or low vision users recognize other people — but only if the wearer takes a photo of them and gives them a name from within its app. According to Envision’s website.
“We’re building products that will help millions of people connect and enrich their lives,” Meta spokesperson Erin Logan said in a statement. The Verge. “While we often hear about interest in this type of feature – and some products already exist on the market – we are still thinking about options and will take a thoughtful approach before introducing anything.”
