Defense Tech
Meta tapped Pentagon supplier Rank One for face recognition in smart glasses
Tags AI · Surveillance · Privacy
Wired·
Meta partnered with Rank One Computing — a Pentagon supplier whose board includes a former CIA deputy director and former FBI science chief — to develop face recognition technology for its smart glasses app. The technology was used for internal development at Meta. Rank One's relationship with defense and intelligence agencies raises questions about the military origins of consumer technology features.
Technical significance
The use of defense-contracted facial recognition technology in consumer products blurs the line between military surveillance and consumer features. Dual-use technology flows from defense to consumer applications raise new privacy questions as smart glasses become capable of real-time identification.