Google Glass is still in its infancy, but there’s already a lot of awesome apps available for the hardware. Unfortunately, there’s a definite lack of games for the hardware despite Google Glass lending itself to augmented reality gaming. One development team is fixing that, however, with it’s own take on Battleship.
Det Ansinn revealed over the weekend that his team at BrickSimple is currently working on a game called GlassBattle. It’s a simplistic take on Battleship where two players wearing Glass compete head-to-head in turn-based battles. Here are the full details:
GlassBattle is a two-player Google Glass game implemented using the Mirror API. It provides turn-based gameplay with synchronous updates over the Internet. This isn’t a mock-up or concept. It’s a fully functional glassware application.
Note: Due to Mirror API quota limitations, we can’t yet share this app with a wider audience. Under the current quota, we can accommodate only a few players per day. As soon as the quota gets lifted, we will open up the gates. Thank you for your patience!
It’s a little simple, sure, but it’s all about baby steps at this point. We’re still years away from the kind of stuff that we saw in concept videos last year, but it’s coming sooner or later.
BBC Introducing put out this video of Turrentine Jones performing the song “Slam the Door” on the BBC Introducing Stage at Glastonbury 2013. This is particularly noteworthy, because it’s shot through the eyes of drummer Rich Watts, who is wearing Google Glass.
Back in May, the bipartisan congressional Privacy Caucus sent an open letter to Google CEO Larry Page asking for clarification on Google Glass and the privacy issues that come with the device. In early June, Google VP, Public Policy and Government Relations, Susan Molinari, sent a response letter.
Do you have concerns about privacy when it comes to devices like Google Glass and other wearable technology? Let us know in the comments.
Joe Barton, co-chairman of the Privacy Caucus, has now issued a statement about Google’s response, and shared Google’s letter in its entirety. Suffice it to say, he’s not exactly pleased with the company’s response.
“I am disappointed in the responses we received from Google,” says Barton. “There were questions that were not adequately answered and some not answered at all. Google Glass has the potential to change the way people communicate and interact. When new technology like this is introduced that could change societal norms, I believe it is important that people’s rights be protected and vital that privacy is built into the device. I look forward to continuing a working relationship with Google as Google Glass develops.”
Here are some highlights from Google’s response:
“As we do for all our products, we are carefully reviewing the design of Glass for privacy considerations as part of Google’s comprehensive privacy program. This includes designing Glass with privacy in mind and ensuring Google has obtained appropriate consent from Glass users.
“We have built Glass to put users in control. Users will have access to their own “MyGlass” site (www.google.com/myglass) and MyGlass mobile application, which will give them a place to monitor the status of their Glass, manage settings, and decide which items or applications will appear on Glass.”
“We have also built some social signals into the way Glass is used. These signals help people understand what users are doing, and give Glass users means for employing etiquette in any given situation. One important feature is that Glass requires user commands to take a photo or record video – actions that also cause the Glass screen to activate, which is visible to others. As you point out in your letter, some parties have already taken measures to address the use of existing technology – such as cell phones, laptops or cameras – in certain circumstances. We expect these types of rules to continue to evolve as more wearable technologies come to market.”
“Our commitment to putting users in control extends to the policies we’ve created for developers making applications for Glas, also called Glassware. For example, Google has said for several years that we won’t add facial recognition features to our products without having strong privacy protections in place. With that in mind, we won’t be approving any facial recognition Glassware at this time. We also prohibit developers from disabling or turning off the display when using the camera. The display must become active when taking a picture and stay active during a video recording as part of your application.”
“While we ask participants in our Explorer program not to sell or transfer their Glass, users who someday transfer Glass to others will have options for removing their content from the device. Glass displays items like photos, videos, and text messages in a timeline, along with a ‘delete’ option to remove them from that timeline. The ‘delete’ function is one way to remove content from Glass. Also, the MyGlass site and app mentioned above will give users the ability to disable specific items (including Gmail, Google+ and Now) from Glass and to perform a factory reset, which will wipe all of their data from the device. Users who lose their Glass can likewise make use of these MyGlass site and app features.”
Glass does have flash memory capable of storing data. This includes storage of information that assists with the operation of the device, such as software libraries and application information. The flash memory can also be used to store user content, such as photos and video, to ensure those moments are saved even when Glass does not have an Internet connection. We are experimenting with ‘lock’ solutions to determine what would work best for this type of device. In the event that a device is misplaced or somehow compromised, users can use their Google account to login to MyGlass and initiate a remote wipe of all data stored on Glass, as described above.”
Google notes in the letter that Glass will be governed by the terms of its broad privacy policy (which took effect in early 2012), and not changes related to Glass are planned. This particular policy has already drawn the ire of some governments, and Google continues to face battles on that front to this day.
Based on Barton’s response, it does not appear that Google has sold the Privacy Caucus on Glass privacy. Has the company’s response alleviated your concerns? Let us know in the comments.
It was a good night for Indiana University guard Victor Oladipo. Not only was the 1st Team All-Big Ten and conference defensive player of the year drafted 2nd overall in Thursday Night’s NBA draft, but he also got some extra attention for an unusual pair of glasses.
Yep, we’re talking Google Glass. Oladipo rocked them during the day yesterday – through press events and pre-draft events. Unfortunately, he took them off for the actual draft ceremony. But fortunately, we have social media. Here’s a Vine video that ESPN tweeted out before the draft began:
This high-tech look made him an instant trend on Twitter.
Oladipo isn’t the only athlete to rock Google Glass at a major sporting event. Earlier this week, American tennis pro Bethanie Mattek-Sands became the first athlete to wear Google Glass during Wimbledon. She didn’t wear the specs during her actual match, however, but for all other events (including practices), she was sporting to wearable tech.
Google knows that Glass could play a big role in the future of sports:
“Glass’s potential in the sports realm is huge, and it can connect athletes, coaches, and fans in new ways,” said Google in the past.
On my way to visit my new home in Orlando @Orlando_Magic looking forward to meeting my teammates and everyone in the program #gomagic
Earlier this month, Google updated its developer polices for Google Glass to ban porn apps. On that very same day, Mikandi launched a porn app for Glass called Tits and Glass. Mikandi soon pulled the app, but now it’s back minus any porn.
In a blog post today (NSFW), Mikandi announced the return of Tits and Glass. To get around Google’s new policies, Mikandi will be using a combination of Glass and its own Web site to share POV porn with the world:
Therefore, the biggest change to the Tits & Glass adult app is that Glass users are no longer allowed to share intimate racy experiences with other Glass users. We’ve added a feature to filter out pornographic material from appearing on the Glass app. But fret not. Although you can’t share your nude photos on the device itself, you can still share your sexy POV content on titsandglass.com. And because we don’t want you to get totally bored with your now-kinda-boring device, we partnered with top photographers around the globe to preload the app with irresistibly hot, *non-pornographic* photos of some of the world’s most beautiful models. You can access, vote, and comment on these photos through Glass. Yay!
It’s a rather diplomatic solution if you ask me. Sure, you can’t browse through POV porn on Glass anymore, but Glass-enabled POV porn is still going to be a thing. Google can’t stop people from filming it and people are going to watch it. Mikandi is just getting a head start on the Glass porn market before Glass becomes generally available later this year/early next year.
Ok, so you know how there’s an exclusive Google Glass setup shop located on the 8th floor of Chelsea Market in Manhattan? Well, Next Gingrich was just there getting set up with his own pair of Google Glass.
So here’s a photo of Next Gingrich getting Google Glass:
And here’s a video of Next Gingrich trying out Google Glass, taken through Google Glass:
“[A]ll of us at Gingrich Productions are excited to have the opportunity to test ‘Google Glass.’ No one knows if Glass will be the next big development in technology, changing our lives like internet-connected smartphones have. But judging from what we have seen of the technology so far, it might,” Gingrich said back in April when he revealed that he’d been selected to participate in the early adopter program.
“Google Glass is one more example of the pioneers of the future who are creating a more open, prosperous and powerful American future, despite the confusion and bickering in Washington.”
Google Glass makes some people feel rather uncomfortable. The biggest concern seems to stem from the idea that Google Glass will eliminate more of our privacy with facial recognition software and the like. Despite Google banning such software on Glass, some developers are already working on privacy solutions.
Japan’s National Institute of Informatics has unveiled what it calls privacy visor glasses. The glasses, which admittedly look far sillier than Google Glass, are equipped with near-infrared LEDs that emit a blinding light when viewed through a camera. Here’s how its inventor describes it:
“You can try wearing sunglasses. But sunglasses alone can’t prevent face detection. Because face detection uses features like the eyes and nose, it’s hard to prevent just by concealing your eyes. This is the privacy visor I have developed, which uses 11 near-infrared LEDs.
Light from these near-infrared LEDs can’t be seen by the human eye, but when it passes through a camera’s imaging device, it appears bright. The LEDs are installed in these locations because, a feature of face detection is, the eyes and part of the nose appear dark, while another part of the nose appears bright. So, by placing light sources mostly near dark parts of the face, we’ve succeeded in canceling face detection characteristics, making face detection fail.
There are only two downsides to these glasses. First, they require electricity and therefore batteries; and secondly, they look way sillier than Google Glass. The latter issue might not be easy to overcome, but the team already has some ideas about the former. Equipping the glasses with reflective material would not only eliminate the electricity requirement, but it would also stop facial detection cameras that aren’t affected by infrared light.
It should be reiterated that Google won’t allow facial recognition software on Glass for now. It wants to sort out all the privacy implications before allowing software that could potentially be abused onto Glass. Even with all those issues sorted out, you may still feel compelled by paranoia to wear something like this. Unfortunately, you’re probably not going to see it on the market anytime soon as it’s still a work in progress.
Wondering how Google Glass interacts with iOS? Jason Tucker from Stabley Times put out this video demonstrating.
Before you watch it, it’s worth noting (as Tucker does in the video) that there’s not a lot you can do with Glass and iOS. You can’t really do much beyond tethering.
On Tuesday, American Bethanie Mattek-Sands will take the court against Germany’s Angelique Kerber in the first round of the Championships at Wimbledon. The 28-year-old is ranked #58 in the world, and is sporting a blue and green hairstyle for the tournament.
But that’s not the only reason to watch Mattek-Sand at Wimbledon this year. Or more importantly, to follow her on social media. That’s because Mattek-Sands is sporting Google Glass, the first professional tennis player to sport the technology at a major event.
The Championships at Wimbledon have always adhered to a fairly strict dress code – so it’s unlikely that she’ll be able to don Google Glass during her match (though it’s not been ruled out completely).
But Mattek-Sands has already been wearing Google Glass around the All England Club, and has been sharing her experience on Twitter:
Glass’s potential in the sports realm is huge, and it can connect athletes, coaches, and fans in new ways. For Bethanie, it’s allowed her to capture her strokes from her point of view during practice and share those with her coaches. It also helps her search recipes and perfect her cooking, something that’s important to a professional athlete with dietary allergies and restrictions.
If you’re looking to catch some of the action over the next couple of weeks, remember: YouTube is streaming live from Wimbledon.
Here’s one of the many firsts we’ll no doubt be hearing about regarding Google Glass as more and more people get their hands on the device. A doctor, Rafael Grossmann, MD, FACS, used Google Glass to record a procedure in which he inserted a feeding tube into a patient. This was streamed via Hangout.
Dr. Grossman, who is in Google’s Glass Explorer program, blogged about the experience, saying, “By performing and documenting this event, I wanted to show that this device and its platform, are certainly intuitive tools that have a great potential in Healthcare, and specifically for surgery, could allow better intra-operative consultations, surgical mentoring and potentiate remote medical education, in a very simple way.”
“The patient involved needed a feeding tube (Gastrostomy) and we chose to placed it endoscopically, with a procedure called PEG (Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy,” he writes. “You can Google that to learn more…). Being the first time, I wanted to do this during a simple and commonly performed procedure, to make sure that my full attention was not diverted from taking excellent care of the patient.”
Before the actual procedure, Grossman recorded himself explaining the event, and talked about the importance of not revealing any of the patient’s health information. He stresses that privacy was taken into a great deal of consideration, and he obtained informed consent, and made sure no recording or transmission of any identifying information took place.
“I had Google Glass on at all times, with the HO active thru-out the procedure,” he writes. “The live video images that I saw thru Glass, were projected in the iPad screen, remotely. We kept the volume down on purpose. We tried to keep it very simple (the KISS principle!) and straight forward. As I said, even the procedure was a simple one.”
The iPad, he says, was just yards away, but could have been anywhere.
Google’s Mike LeBeau and Amanda Rosenberg decided to make a video to show off some of the the useful searches you can do via Google Glass.
“One thing that makes Glass awesome is that you can just long press on the touchpad any time and speak to ask Google a question. It’s a super fast way to search which, it turns out, is pretty magical,” says LeBeau.
Pulling up photos of Richard Branson in drag and displaying them right in front of your face? Magical? You bet.
Although Americans may be warming up to Google Glass and its ilk, it’s inevitable that some businesses and institutions are going to seek to ban the device (and other wearable technology) as it becomes more prevalent in society.
Concerned about privacy? Stealthy, nefarious activities? Simply don’t want people snapping pictures and taking surreptitious video? Whatever the reason, some people are just going to balk at the idea of having a Google Glass-ed patron perusing their establishment.
Apparently, that fear has already spread to casinos.
According to Silicon Valley’s Mercury News, casinos in Las Vagas, notably those owned by Caesars Entertainment and MGM, have told their security people to ask any Google Glass-wearing gamblers to please remove their devices.
And across the country, New Jersey’s Division of Gambling Enforcement has put out a “directive” that Atlantic City’s 12 different casinos must all bar patrons from using Google Glass.
“For example, if these eyeglasses were worn during a poker game, they could be used to broadcast a patron’s hand to a confederate or otherwise be used in a collusive manner…such improper use of the eyeglasses would violate (New Jersey law) and would be a criminal offense. However, prosecution would require proof beyond a reasonable doubt that the glasses were being used for cheating,” said the division.
And even if the devices weren’t being used for cheating, they might create the illusion that something fishy is going on.
Considering I can’t even take my iPhone out and answer a text while I’m sitting down at a blackjack table in most casinos, it’s hard to be shocked by this Google Glass ban.
We are thinking very carefully about how we design Glass because new technology always raises new issues. Our Glass Explorer program, which reaches people from all walks of life, will ensure that our users become active participants in shaping the future of this technology.
Do you like Google Glass? Are you scared of its privacy implications? Turns out most Americans fall into both camps.
USA Today reports that a new survey out of Rackspace has found that Americans love wearable technology like Google Glass. By and large, 82 percent of wearable technology users think that devices like Google Glass have had a positive impact on their lives. People also feel that this technology has helped to boost their confidence, advance their careers, and improved their fitness.
That all sounds great, and it’s probably something Google envisioned with Glass. It’s obvious that the company wants to make computing far more personal. The above survey responses are just some of the potential perks of merging your real identity with your online persona.
Even so, the people surveyed aren’t all seeing rainbows and gumdrops when it comes to Google Glass. A large group of Americans feel that Google Glass presents some significant privacy concerns into the equation. The survey found the 53 percent of those who don’t use wearable devices do so because of privacy concerns. Another 45 percent think that Google Glass and the like are “too much like Big Brother.”
We’ve been seeing this response since Google Glass was first introduced. People are naturally scared of anything that’s always on. It’s even worse when that device has a camera that can take pictures and record video. Google may have banned facial recognition on Glass over privacy concerns, but people are still going to be distrusting of it.
That being said, Rackspace CTO John Engates thinks that a future dominated by Google Glass is inevitable. He says that the children being born today are going to grow up in a world where wearable computing is the norm and won’t see anything wrong with it. He even goes so far as to say that the trend of wearable computers is “unstoppable.”
Well, we’ll see how unstoppable it is once Google Glass and the rumored wearable computers from Apple and Microsoft hit the market over the next few years. It’s going to be the young adults, not the generation growing up now, that must set the stage for a potential wearable computing revolution. If they adopt it, then its place in culture is set.
If it exists, there will be porn on it. It’s true for pretty much every gadget out there, and Google Glass is no different.
TechHive reports that Google has updated its Glass platform developer policies to include a section banning sexually explicit material on the device. It’s been added as the very first item under content policies:
We don’t allow Glassware content that contains nudity, graphic sex acts, or sexually explicit material. Google has a zero-tolerance policy against child pornography. If we become aware of content with child pornography, we will report it to the appropriate authorities and delete the Google Accounts of those involved with the distribution.
Google should have updated its policies sooner because there’s already a porn app for Glass called “Tits and Glass.” It was released after Google had updated its policies, but the team at MiKandi had been working on the app long before Google ever said no to porn on Glass. In fact, they launched the app on Monday – only two days after the policies were updated.
So, what will the developers do now? Well, Google hasn’t contacted them about the app yet. It could be that Google doesn’t see it as a violation of its newly updated policies, but that’s unlikely. “Tits and Glass” is a porn app through and through. It even includes some Glass-specific porn.
In another world, Glass could be celebrated as a revolutionary device for porn, but this is not that world. Google has to watch its own back to avoid any potential controversies that would arise from letting people distribute porn on Glass.
The developers behind Tits and Glass are not just going to throw in the towel though. That being said, they don’t really know what to do either though. The developers are said to be discussing their next move.
With Google constantly updating its policies on Glass to address things like pornography, facial recognition and more; Tits and Glass developer Jesse Adams said it best – “Google must be afraid of how powerful their own Glasses are.”
And therein lies the inherent challenge with Glass or any open technology for that matter. It’s pretty much impossible to completely regulate what people can and can not do or see. Hackers have already rooted Glass and have done some incredible (and terrifying) things with it. What’s to stop Glass owners from bypassing Google’s own policies to use Glass as a porn creation tool? Sure, they can’t distribute the app through official channels, but that hasn’t stopped the proliferation of questionable apps on Android. Once Glass goes public, a number of third-party app stores will rise up to offer the kind of apps that Google won’t.
Google is no stranger to privacy debates, but Google Glass seems to have really struck a nerve with privacy proponents. It seemed like we were on the verge of an entirely new debate when a third-party developer announced its intentions to launch a facial recognition app for Glass. That debate will have to wait, however, as Google has put a stop to facial recognition development for now.
On Friday, the official Project Glass Google+ page announced that it would not approve any facial recognition software for Glass until strong privacy protections are in place:
When we started the Explorer Program nearly a year ago our goal was simple: we wanted to make people active participants in shaping the future of this technology ahead of a broader consumer launch. We’ve been listening closely to you, and many have expressed both interest and concern around the possibilities of facial recognition in Glass. As Google has said for several years, we won’t add facial recognition features to our products without having strong privacy protections in place. With that in mind, we won’t be approving any facial recognition Glassware at this time.
We’ve learned a lot from you in just a few weeks and we’ll continue to learn more as we update the software and evolve our policies in the weeks and months ahead.
In short, privacy proponents can breathe easy for now. In the long term, however, those same privacy proponents have their work cut out for them. Even if Google implements stringent privacy protections, people will still be unhappy about the existence of any facial recognition in Glass.
The debate will rage on for months, and even years, as Google Glass and hardware like it continues to evolve. For now, there’s a simple solution to the privacy debate though. Privacy warriors just have to convince every Google Glass owner to wear one of these privacy covers when out in public. That should be easy enough, right?
A lot of people are concerned about Google Glass. Most feel that those who use the wearable computers will be infringing on their privacy with the device’s camera. There’s a simple solution though – just put a box over it.
Designer rweaving has shared what he calls the “Glass privacy cover” on Thingiverse. It’s a small plastic casing created via 3D printer that then fits snugly over the camera on Glass. Don’t worry though – it doesn’t cover the display so you’ll still be able to use Glass.
There are a few problems, of course. The first is that most people don’t own a 3D printer. Although, one could argue that those who can afford Glass at the moment can surely afford the 3D printer necessary to make one of these.
The second is that people would still probably feel uneasy around Google Glass wearers even if they had this “privacy cover” on. Who’s to stop somebody from making a tiny hole in the cover to allow recording while making it appear that it’s covered?
Still, it’s a nice gesture and a possible solution for locations that are mulling a ban on Google Glass. Of course, they could just tell people to take off Glass while they’re in the bar, strip club, etc. Where’s the fun in that though? It would surely double your nerd cred to have Google Glass and the 3D printer necessary to create the “privacy cover.”
Sarah Palin recently denied comment when she was approached by a reporter wearing Google Glass, and he suspects that all the controversy surrounding the state-of-the-art eyewear is behind it.
Nilay Patel wore the glasses to cover the Indy 500 and ran into Palin and her husband at the Woodford Reserve Hotel the night before. When he approached the couple, he says Palin refused to take a picture with him or even talk to him. Since the technology was all the rage at the gathering–with several curious people approaching Patel to ask about them and take photos with him–he asked Palin if she wanted to try them out.
“What’s in it for us?” her husband Todd said. “We don’t know what company you’re with.”
Patel assured them he wasn’t looking for an edorsement, but Todd Palin asked him to leave anyway.
It’s no secret that many are concerned about privacy when it comes to Google Glass; in fact, a petition has been started to ban the technology from being used until clear boundaries are put in place surrounding them.
“Google Glass is a new twist on technology which hasn’t had clearly stated limits on the locations in US communities where it can and cannot be used. In order to protect our communities we need limitations to prevent indecent public surveillance of our friends, children, and families,” the petition states. “It is hard to prevent it because the hardware gives no notification that it is recording an individual at any given time.”
Even Patel brings up an interesting point; when he was covering the race, he ducked into a men’s bathroom, forgetting he still had the glasses on. When he got some dirty looks, he quickly remembered and took them off.
For now, there seem to be many kinks to be worked out when it comes to Glass and when and where the technology should be used, and that includes around celebrities and political figures.
Wearable computers are somewhat of a fad these days. It’s hard to say if it will be a fad a year from now, but Apple is researching ways to capitalize on the trend it if happens to grow.
Reuters reports that Apple CEO Tim Cook hinted that wearable computers were on the tech giant’s shortlist of new products this week during an All Things Digital conference. He didn’t come right out and say that Apple was working on a smartwatch, but he did say that his company is working on “several more game changers.”
So, what would an Apple-made wearable computer look like? It won’t be anything like Google Glass or other wearable computers. He said “there’s nothing that’s going to convince a kid who has never worn glasses or a band or a watch to wear one.” In other words, slapping a computer onto a watch isn’t suddenly going to make somebody want to wear a watch. Cook said that “there’s lots of things to solve in this space,” so Apple is obviously researching how to make wearable computers cool.
That’s always what Apple has done best – making nerdy things cool. You could argue that Google Glass is really cool, but then a bunch of pasty white nerds make it not so cool anymore. An Apple iWatch or whatever it’s called would have to convince people that it’s cool to wear something that’s inherently nerdy on their person at all times.
Of course, there’s always the possibility that Apple may just give up on its plans to release a wearable computer. It was impossible to make a calculator watch cool in the 80s, and it may be just as impossible to make smartwatches cool today.
The “Terminator” films have been mentioned more than a handful of times in discussions about Google Glass, and this is not going to do anything to make the comparison less relevant. Facial recognition is reportedly coming to Google Glass, potentially opening up the doors for anybody to have Terminator-like features.
Are you concerned about the future of privacy with regards to devices like Google Glass? Tell us what you think.
Google itself is not offering facial recognition with Google Glass. At least not yet. But that’s not stopping others from developing the technology for the device.
Matt Warman at The Telegraph, noting that Google’s terms do not forbid the use of the device for facial recognition, reports that San Francisco-based Lambbda Labs is set to launch its API to developers “in days”. He writes, “The first version of Lamda Labs software forces users take photographs, tag them with information on who is in them and then compare any subsequent photographs taken to those previously uploaded. Future versions, however, may allow real-time recognition of faces.”
Sarah Connor?
Come to think of it, this could prove even more precise than Terminator features, because even the Terminator got the wrong Sarah Connor to begin with.
Google has reportedly said that it will not implement its own facial recognition technology in Glass, until it has prviacy protections in place.
When using Google Glass, is it true that this product would be able to use Facial Recognition Technology to unveil personal information about whomever and even som inanimate objects that the user is viewing? Would a user be able to request such information? Can a non-user or human subject opt out of this collection of personal data? If so, How? If not, why not?
In Google’s privacy policy, it states that the company “may reject requests that are unreasonably repetitive, require disproportionate technical effort…risk the privacy of others, or would be extremely impractical.” Please provide examples of when Google would reject requests on Google Glass that would risk the privacy of others? Would Google place limits on the technology and what type of information it can reveal about another person? If so, please explain. If not, why not?
They gave Page until June 14h to respond to concerns (which were not limited to these specifically).
Beyond the obvious privacy implications, there are good things that could become of such capabilities. As Warman notes, people have suggested examples like apps for doormen to make admission to events easier or software for disabled people. Perhaps a blind person, for example, could use the device to capture a person’s face, and then be told whose face is in front of them via audio.
TechCrunch recently spoke with Lambda Labs co-founder Stephen Balaban. Sarah Perez reports:
Applied to Glass, the technology will enable apps such as “remember this face,” “find your friends in a crowd,” “networking event interest matching,” “intelligent contact books,” and more, Balaban explains
According to Warman, there are already 1,000 developers working with Lambda Labs’ software, generating five million attempts at recognition per month, and that’s without Glass. And that’s just one company’s software. Consider the possibility that many others could implement their own facial recognition capabilities with various features attached.
Facebook, for example has over a billion users, and it already has an app for Glass. Less than a year ago, the company bought facial recognition company Face.com. Here’s an interview we did with Face.com CEO Gil Hirsch before the acquisition.
Google, of course, has its own facial recognition capabilities, and it would be pretty surprising if it didn’t implement them at some point. In fact, the company acquired Viewdle, a facial recognition and augmented reality company, as recently as last fall.
More recently, at Google I/O earlier this month, Google revealed some new photo features for Google+, including the ability to automatically sort photos by landmark, human presence, aesthetics and other indicators. It’s getting better at recognizing what is in an image.
Of course many have expressed concerns about facial recognition technology regardless of whether or not Google Glass is involved. A Memorial Day report from the Associated Press suggests that “drones with facial recognition technology will end anonymity, everywhere.”
“Adding that capability to drones that can fly into spaces where planes cannot — machines that can track a person moving about and can stay aloft for days — means that people will give up privacy as well as the concept of anonymity,” writes Andrew Conte.
Conte has a whole series of reports on this stuff here.
“People are interested to harvest as much information they can from photos and videos… to connect with other people,” Hirsch said of his own Face.com in our interview. “It’s just another platform to connect with other people.”
To some, that’s what the technology, in general, has to offer users of a device like Google Glass. Others, however, are concerned that not everyone with access to the technology will have people’s best interests in mind.
It’s going to be quite interesting to see how Google handles these concerns. It’s been in trouble for privacy-related issus more than once in the past, and still has to answer to Congress. And this is really only one of the concerns they have (there were about ten in the letter).
The article questions the safety of Google Glass. It doesn’t so much question the safety of the device itself, but that of the human brain and how it would deal with the the real world while wearing the device. The duo says:
According to the results of two representative national surveys we conducted, about 70 percent of Americans believe that “people will notice when something unexpected enters their field of view, even when they’re paying attention to something else.”
Yet experiments that we and others have conducted showed that people often fail to notice something as obvious as a person in a gorilla suit in situations where they are devoting attention to something else. Researchers using eye-tracking devices found that people can miss the gorilla even when they look right at it. This phenomenon of “inattentional blindness” shows that what we see depends not just on where we look but also on how we focus our attention.
While a person in a gorilla suit may seem like a funny example, this is actually a pretty important subject, particularly if the device goes mainstream.
Some states are already looking at banning the device while driving. As discussed in a recent article, however, one of the engineers behind Google Glass has spoken about “super vision” and “night vision” one day being possibilities with the technology.
There are other apparent dangers of wearing Google Glass. For one, as Google says right in its own Glass FAQ that it could be harmful to some eyes, particularly children’s.
“Glass isn’t for everyone. Like when wearing glasses, some people may feel eye strain or get a headache,” Google says. “If you’ve had Lasik surgery, ask your doctor about risks of eye impact damage before using Glass. Don’t let children under 13 use Glass as it could harm developing vision. Also, kids might break Glass or hurt themselves, and Google’s terms of service don’t permit those under 13 to register a Google account.”
Google Glass could be the future of computing or it could be something we’re all sitting around laughing back on years from now. Actually, a lot of people are already laughing about it, and some are making videos ridiculing the device and those who wear it.
This one doesn’t seem to be done in a mean-spirited way, but it does show you how silly you could look while taking pictures with Glass – one of things it’s supposed to be great for.
