Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses are facing renewed scrutiny after a WIRED investigation revealed that the Meta AI companion app contains code for an unreleased facial recognition feature capable of identifying people captured through the device's camera.
Researchers examining recent versions of the app uncovered references to an internal system known as "NameTag," which appears designed to recognise faces, convert them into biometric data, and alert users when familiar individuals are detected.
The findings suggest Meta has been developing the technology for several months, raising fresh questions about privacy, biometric data collection, and the future of AI-powered wearables.
How nametag works
According to WIRED's analysis, the feature relies on three AI models. One detects a face in an image, another aligns and processes the image, while a third converts facial characteristics into biometric data that can be used for identification.
Researchers also found evidence suggesting recognised facial data may be stored locally on user devices after facial "prints" are retrieved from Meta's servers.
Although the feature is not currently available to consumers, its presence within the app indicates Meta has been actively exploring facial recognition capabilities for its smart glasses ecosystem.
The discovery has reignited concerns about facial recognition in wearable devices.
Unlike smartphones, smart glasses can capture images and video in a more discreet manner, raising questions about consent, surveillance, and the collection of biometric information in public spaces.
Privacy advocates argue that real-time identification could make facial recognition more pervasive in everyday life, particularly if individuals are identified without their knowledge.
The findings are likely to attract attention from regulators already examining how technology companies collect, store, and process sensitive biometric data.
Meta says the feature remains under development and has not been released.
"Nothing has shipped to consumers, and no final decision has been made on what to do here, if anything. If we do decide to roll something out, we will take a thoughtful approach and do so with full transparency," the company said in a statement cited by WIRED.
Meta also stated that it is not building a centralised facial recognition database.
The revelation comes as technology companies race to develop AI-powered smart glasses capable of becoming everyday computing devices.
Meta's Ray-Ban glasses already support photography, video recording, voice interactions, translation, and AI-assisted visual recognition. Meanwhile, Google and Samsung are developing Android XR-powered smart glasses equipped with cameras, microphones, and AI assistants.
While no indication competing devices will include facial recognition, the emergence of NameTag highlights how wearable AI is rapidly evolving beyond information retrieval toward systems capable of identifying and interpreting people in real time.
The debate now extends beyond the technology itself. As AI becomes embedded in wearable devices, regulators and privacy advocates are increasingly asking whether facial identification in public spaces should be permitted at all, and what safeguards are needed to protect users and bystanders alike.
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