MIT Technology Review Narrated: smart glasses are already causing havoc in India

When Shubnam saw an Instagram video of a Delhi protest they had attended, they realized a content creator wearing Meta smart glasses had recorded them surreptitiously. The mocking reel drew millions of views, along with transphobic abuse and AI-generated memes.

Experts warn that many others will experience similar ordeals as smart glasses go mainstream. The risks are particularly acute in India, where covert recording and the circulation of images without consent are already pervasive.

The bigger issue is that the smart glasses aren’t just being used to turn ordinary people into targets of viral “pranks.” They’re also becoming a tool of police surveillance.

This is our latest story to become an MIT Technology Review Narrated podcast, which we publish each week on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Just navigate to MIT Technology Review Narrated on either platform, and follow us to get all our new content as it’s released.

The must-reads

I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.

1 Trump and tech executives have agreed to “self-regulate” AI
Their accord calls for controls, audits, and board oversight. (AP News)
+ Trump called it “morally binding,” but it isn’t legally enforceable. (NBC News)
+ Elon Musk compared it to “grading each other’s homework.” (AFP)
+ Trump also doubled down on data centers despite GOP opposition. (NYT $)
+ And ordered the US government to call AI “Super Intelligence.”(Verge)
+ While singling out his intelligence chief for the AI czar role. (Axios)
+ The US is divided over AI regulation. (MIT Technology Review)

2 China’s vaunted Kimi models told researchers how to make bioweapons
Testersbypassed the models’ safety guardrails using a jailbreak. (BBC)
+ China’s AI agents can lie and scheme like their US rivals. (Reuters $)
+ Trump has ruled out any joint AI venture with China. (BBC)
+ AI is making bioweapons easier to design. (MIT Technology Review)