Many argue that the future is coming faster than we know it. With advancements in every aspect of life, it’s inevitable that humanity will begin to create technological advancements we once only dreamed of. Among the many other handheld/portable devices, Meta glasses, created by Mark Zuckerberg, have many memebers of society in a chokehold. What is this invention you may ask? Some may refer to them as a captivating technology; wearable glasses that can take calls, play music, and record 4k video. However, others see them for what they truly are, an unnecessary and invasive invention. I believe Meta glasses to be an invasion of privacy because of the human-tech dependent relationship they promote, their ability to find anyones personal information, and the unfair advantage posed by users.
Mark Zuckerberg is nothing short of a marketing genius. With some of the most successful platforms like Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger, Zuckerberg has reeled in amounts of money that some of us only dream of. This success, however, is matched by the amount of backlash Meta(Zuckerberg’s company) recieves. On February 18th, Zuckerberg had an engagement in a Los Angeles courtroom regarding the impact of social media on children. To the surprise of court officials, inlcuding the judge, his team arrived wearing Meta glasses. Not only was this display disrespectful as recording is generally prohibited in Los Angeles court rooms, but it was contradictory as it essentially proved the dependent relationship people have with technology. An article posted to CBS News by Mary Cunningham says, “The judge upbraided the Meta team and said if you guys have recorded anything, you have to dispose of it or I will hold you in contempt,” Jacob Ward, a technology journalist and the host of the Rip Current Podcast, told CBS News, calling the incident “an extraordinary misstep” by Meta.” This lack of maturity by one of the biggest social media organizations in the world raises the question whether Meta as a company should have as much power as it does, highlighting the importance of their court trial at the very least.
Court cases and lawsuits aren’t the only things proving Meta glasses invasive. An investigation by two Harvard students, AnhPhu Nguyen and Caine Ardayfio, proves the glasses to be nothing short of creepy. The students were able to use Meta glasses to figure out students personal information including, name, age, address, and phone number. This discovery raised severe safety concerns about information accessible to artificial intelligence. A Forbes article by Lindsey Choo says, “Meta did not respond to request for comment from Forbes; it has said in its policies regarding privacy concerns that it encourages users to respect people’s preferences, power off in private spaces, and use “voice or a clear gesture” to let others know they are being captured.” This “solution” proposed by Meta means nothing. Meta glasses are an invention with no regard for privacy. Simply suggesting that users respect other’s privacy won’t actually solve the issue of artificial identification. Rather than blaming consumers, Meta should look to themselves, especially to their leader Mark Zuckerberg. They’re aware of the harmful and addictive technology they’re creating, but as long as profit is involved they will continue to put out articles of tech that damage society.
Among Meta glasses’ many other disadvantages, Zuckerberg goes as far as to claim that anyone not wearing the glasses will be at a “cognitive disadvantage.” If Meta believes this remark from their CEO makes Meta glasses look desirable, it does not. If anything, this remark highlights the elitist values of advanced business people, and the reliance they have on mindless spending. Most of the income made from the glasses is from people who are mindlessly buying new tech without looking into the threat they pose. An article by Wired detailed the events of Meta’s Connect developer conference. The presentation was a train wreck of sorts. As the CTO of Meta Andrew Bosworth got onstage and said the command words, “Hey Meta” to activate the glasses, every pair of glasses in the room turned on. This event turned the presentation into a bit of a joke. A technology that had been talked up to be the new frontier was just as easily torn down to the A.I. slop it is. The article adds, “But the weirdness, the timid exchanges, the repeated commands, and the wooden conversations inadvertently reflect just how graceless this technology can be when used in the real world.” With all odds stacked against Meta they had successfully crumbled under the pressure of a presentation, rather than create a meaningful product that properly functions.
Despite the many downsides of Meta glasses there is one significant positive. When traveling to a popular tourist destination there’s no denying that you’ll see hundreds of people recording on their phones. Not out of malicious intent, but rather to preserve their memories on what is likely a vacation. A blog posted by Travel Pockets detailed a users experience with the glasses while on a trip to Japan. Among the bustling streets she didn’t want to stop to take out her phone and be brought out of the moment, so naturally the glasses came in handy. She made it clear that her intent wasn’t to record people specifically, but the culture and monuments of Japan. The blog says, “There’s something incredibly liberating about being able to capture a cool moment or a stunning street scene without drawing attention to yourself.” With somewhat of a hands-free way of documenting a trip, the glasses made the experience more intimate and memorable, proving they aren’t one hundred percent bad.
Meta glasses are one of the most controversial items currently on the market. They provide an “easy” hands-free way of communicating and taking pictures, or so that’s what Meta wants you to think. Even in the midst of a few small positives, the negatives of Meta glasses outweigh tremendously. Even if someone is simply using the glasses to capture a monument or memory, they will capture a lot of by standing people in the process. Once these people are captured their privacy is invaded by the relentless Meta A.I. tools. Despite a small positive that still poses a threat to civilians privacy, meta glasses also pose a societal threat due to the dependent relationship they promote, their ability to locate personal information, and the disadvantage they set non-users at. To conclude, Meta glasses are an invasive and unnecessary technology that should be improved/made more accessible, or discontinued all together.
