One day after discovery, Meta pulls facial recognition code from its smart glasses

Published: Tuesday, June 9, 2026 at 4:31 pm

Meta has swiftly removed facial recognition code from its smart glasses companion app, Meta AI, just one day after its existence was revealed. A recent analysis of the app's code by WIRED found that the latest version no longer contains the unactivated software components previously identified as powering a system internally known as NameTag. Earlier versions of the Meta AI app, which is installed on tens of millions of devices, explicitly included code libraries dedicated to face recognition. The updated release, however, omits these.

Meta's vice president of communications, Andy Stone, described the feature as purely exploratory, stating that no definitive decision has been made regarding its future. This development follows a report by WIRED detailing how substantial portions of the NameTag system had been integrated into the Meta AI app. Although never publicly activated, the system was designed to transform faces captured by the smart glasses into unique biometric signatures, or faceprints, and then compare them against a local database of faceprints stored on the user's device. The reporting also indicated that faces the system failed to identify were cropped, indexed, and stored locally for potential future processing.

The NameTag system first came to light in February, with reports suggesting Meta was developing face recognition for its smart glasses and considering a launch this year. Internal documents reportedly indicated a strategy to release the feature during a period of political distraction to mitigate scrutiny from privacy and civil liberties advocates. Prior to the recent WIRED report, much of the system's infrastructure was found to be built into the Meta AI app, despite public statements from Meta suggesting no final decisions had been made on face recognition.

Following the initial report, Meta officials, including Stone and Chief Technology Officer Andrew Bosworth, characterized the reporting as misleading and dishonest. Meta declined to answer specific questions regarding the creation of the face profile database, data retention policies for unrecognized individuals' photographs and biometric data, and whether such data would be transmitted to Meta's servers.

BNN's Perspective: The rapid removal of the facial recognition code suggests a swift response to public scrutiny and potential regulatory concerns. While Meta maintains the feature was experimental, the integration of such technology into widely distributed apps raises significant questions about data privacy and the company's approach to developing and deploying advanced surveillance capabilities. The incident underscores the ongoing tension between technological innovation and the public's right to privacy, highlighting the need for greater transparency and accountability from tech giants.

Keywords: Meta, smart glasses, facial recognition, NameTag, Meta AI, WIRED, privacy, biometric data, faceprints, code, app, data retention, surveillance, technology, civil liberties

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