Meta Eyes Return of Facial Recognition to Smart Glasses

Meta is reportedly planning to reintroduce facial recognition technology to its smart glasses, a feature internally referred to as "Name Tag." This development follows the company's decision five years ago to disable a similar facial recognition system on Facebook due to privacy and legal considerations. The new "Name Tag" feature aims to allow smart glasses wearers to identify individuals and retrieve information about them using Meta's artificial intelligence assistant.

The company is navigating significant privacy and safety risks associated with this technology. Internal documents suggest Meta considered an initial release to attendees of a conference for the blind before a broader public launch. The company also noted that the current political climate might serve as opportune timing for the feature's rollout, with civil society groups potentially preoccupied with other matters.

Facial recognition technology has been a subject of widespread debate concerning civil liberties and the potential for surveillance by both governments and corporations. Meta's smart glasses, developed with EssilorLuxottica, have seen commercial success, with over seven million units sold last year. The re-emergence of facial recognition is partly driven by a desire to make the AI assistant more robust and to distinguish Meta's wearables in a competitive market.

Meta has a history of privacy-related settlements, including significant fines for alleged violations concerning user data collection and facial recognition systems. Recent changes to Meta's internal privacy risk review process have raised questions about compliance with past agreements. The company has stated it is thoughtfully considering all options before any potential rollout of such features.