Trending Now - Meta's AI Glasses Face Backlash Over Privacy Violations

WHO:

Meta (company)

President Trump (mentioned in context of privacy concerns)

Employees of Sama (data annotation subcontractor based in Nairobi, Kenya)

Whistleblowers and contractors from Kenya

Swedish newspapers: Svenska Dagbladet and Göteborgs-Posten

WHAT:

Meta's AI smart glasses reportedly share intimate videos and sensitive financial information with human moderators.

Videos reviewed include individuals using the bathroom, engaging in sexual activity, and showing bank cards.

The glasses can record video manually or through an AI feature that allows users to ask questions about their surroundings.

Meta's terms of service state that user interactions with AI can be reviewed by humans or automated systems.

Sales of the Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses tripled in 2025, with over 7 million units sold.

Meta is facing a class action lawsuit related to the working conditions of content moderators.

WHERE:

Data annotation work is conducted in Nairobi, Kenya.

Meta's servers are located in Luleå, Sweden, and Denmark.

WHEN:

The investigation was reported in March 2026.

The Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses collaboration launched in 2023.

The upgraded AI-powered Meta Ray-Ban Display model was released in September 2025.

The internal memo from Meta regarding facial recognition was quoted in The New York Times in 2025.

WHY:

The review of sensitive footage is part of a process known as data labeling, which is used to train AI models.

Concerns over privacy and user consent have intensified due to the nature of the footage being reviewed.

HOW:

Users must agree to Meta's terms of service to use the AI features, which allows data to be reviewed by humans.

Contractors report that they are expected to carry out their work without questioning the content they review, leading to discomfort among workers.

The AI feature keeps the glasses' camera and microphone continuously active during sessions to provide faster responses.

Meta is facing serious privacy concerns as reports reveal that its AI smart glasses can share intimate videos and sensitive financial information with human moderators, including footage of individuals in private situations. The investigation, which surfaced last Monday, highlights the troubling working conditions for employees of Sama, a data annotation subcontractor in Nairobi, where contractors are expected to review this sensitive content without question. With sales of the Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses tripling last year and over 7 million units sold, the company is now also dealing with a class action lawsuit related to these issues.