What you record with your AI-powered Meta Ray-Ban glasses, yes, even those intimate moments you think you’re alone are probably being watched by a stranger.
Investigation by Swedish press Svenska Dagblade and Gothenburg – Posten It has emerged that offshore meth workers in Kenya were asked to analyze intimate and even “disturbing” videos shot by spectacle wearers, including videos shot in bathrooms, footage featuring nudity or sexual content, and images showing personal information such as bank accounts. This is part of a process known as data labeling, and is used to train an AI model using footage that was originally reviewed and annotated by a human so that the AI understands what it’s “seeing.”
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Workers told the magazine that many of the videos appeared to be from moments when users were unaware they were being recorded. The group works for Sama, the same meta contractor who is facing a class action lawsuit on behalf of content moderators who claim they are being exploited and forced to review shocking content without proper working conditions.
“I understand that what you’re looking at is someone’s private life, but at the same time you’re just expected to perform your job. You can’t question that. If you start questioning it, you’re done,” one employee told the publication.
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Meta’s Terms of Service reserve the right to send your interactions with AI services, including always-on live AI features, to human moderators. The company referred to this policy when asked for comment by news outlets.
The Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses collaboration was launched in 2023 and received mixed reviews regarding its photo and video capabilities and AI features. In September, Meta released an upgraded AI-powered Meta Ray-Ban display model. It promises to integrate a new neural band interface and an AI assistant that will turn them into the glasses of the future.
According to CNBC, sales of the glasses tripled in 2025, with more than 7 million units sold.
But in the months since then, Meta’s wearable eye camera device has faced widespread backlash following an increase in influencer content depicting wearers of Meta’s glasses secretly recording or harassing unsuspecting strangers. Wearers have devised a way to hide the glasses’ always-on recording lights, which are meant to alert the public when users are recording video, instead turning the smart devices into tools for viral pickup artists and pranksters.
In addition to concerns about individual consent, the device has raised concerns about the rapidly growing web of surveillance and facial recognition technology that Meta has previously been criticized for. The company later announced that it would move forward with introducing live AI capabilities in 2025, including the possibility of facial recognition. The upgrade will allow the device to “always have cameras and sensors on and use AI to remember what the wearer encounters throughout the day.” Privacy advocates also warn that the technology could one day be used by third parties, including the federal government’s militarized police force.
