Meta To Launch Smart Glasses Without Camera As Privacy Backlash Grows

Meta will launch smart glasses without a camera at Connect, The Information reports, as the backlash to the form factor grows.

All of Meta's smart glasses feature a white LED at the end of one temple that flashes when the wearer captures an image and pulses while they're recording. For every model except the failed Ray-Ban Stories from 2021, the glasses will not capture imagery if you try to cover the light, as detected by an ambient light sensor in the LED.

But many regular people still aren't aware that glasses with a camera are even a thing, and because of this, the light can be hard to notice outdoors in daylight. This has led to nefarious wearers recording people with neither their consent nor knowledge that they're on camera.

Worse, a market has cropped up for physically taking the glasses apart to remove the LED. Meta has rolled out firmware updates to disable the camera on glasses where it detects the LED has been tampered with, but as with all such measures, it's a game of cat-and-mouse between Meta and the hackers.

Meta claims that less than 0.1% of its sold smart glasses have been tampered with, but that would still equate to around 10 thousand units, given that the company and its partner EssilorLuxottica have sold over 10 million units now.

The nefarious use of the camera on Meta's smart glasses, whether to make social media video content, for reasons of personal perversion, or, in rare cases, to covertly record police and other authorities, has led to relatively widespread backlash against the entire form factor. Some people now brand them "pervert glasses" or "creep glasses", and even call for them to be banned in law:

• Some gyms, including Planet Fitness, ban smart glasses on their premises, regardless of whether they’re recording.
• Bars, pubs and clubs in the US, UK and Canada have banned wearing them. New York’s BASEMENT even bans carrying them in a bag. Wetherspoons (the UK's largest pub chain) prohibits recording customers or staff without permission, but not merely wearing the glasses.
• Cruise ship companies Royal Caribbean and Carnival allow them aboard but prohibit their use in casinos, toilets, changing rooms and other sensitive areas. MSC bans them throughout its ships’ public areas.
• Courts in England and Wales, and US court systems including New York’s, require the glasses to be surrendered on entry. New York explicitly includes prescription pairs.
• Bans also cover conventions and festivals including DEF CON and Body Movements, and schools in Oslo. SAT exams prohibit them during testing and breaks, subject to approved accommodations, while the US Air Force bans wearing them in uniform.

Lost in this outcry, of course, is the fact that the vast majority of smart glasses owners do not use the devices for nefarious purposes. A knife can be used to prepare a delicious meal or kill someone. A fire can be used to warm a cave or burn down a forest. Should a tool be defined by its worst use?

Some of the smart glasses backlash appears to be driven by the misconception that Meta's smart glasses are always recording (a technical impossibility, given battery and thermal limitations) and by a lack of awareness of the recording LED's existence. In response to this, Meta has now launched a widespread PR campaign of videos and posters highlighting the recording LED and its function.

Meta Could Demo Next-Gen Headset At Connect With Full-Body Codec Avatars

Meta could demo its upcoming ultralight headset next week at Connect with photorealistic full-body Codec Avatars, The Information reports.

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If The Information's report is to be believed, though, Meta plans to launch a new range of smart glasses at Connect 2026 next week that lack cameras entirely. The glasses will still have microphones and speakers, and the button that starts recording on its current range will, on these new glasses, start a conversation with the Meta AI chatbot or Muse, the company's recently launched AI agent. However, without cameras, the AI will be unable to see what you see, limiting its usefulness.

The report also suggests that dropping the cameras will allow for a sleeker design with slimmer temples, making the glasses look more like ordinary glasses. That could make them preferable for buyers looking for a more comfortable experience, while others may just want to avoid the social backlash of wearing a camera. It should also enable a lower price point.

The same report also claims Meta could demo its next-generation headset at Connect with full-body Codec Avatars.

UploadVR will be on-site at Meta Connect 2026 to bring you full coverage of whatever the company ends up announcing.