I recently reviewed the Even Realities G1 smart glasses (they’re very cool) and the first real-world thing I used them for was scamming someone. I told a local bartender that I had an encyclopedic knowledge of cinema and would answer the hardest question he could ask in exchange for a drink. After a quick consultation with Google, the guy came back with “Who directed the 1922 film? Office of Dr. Caligari?”
I nodded thoughtfully and repeated the question as if to check that I had heard correctly. The AI agent silently did its job, and in about three seconds, the answer was floating in front of my eyes, completely invisible to everyone around me.
Credit: Stephen Johnson
“Robert Vienna?” I asked, feigning uncertainty. Boom! Free drink. This isn’t the hardest trivia question, but I could have answered literally anything: the date The doctor is going to be passed out was released, the day of the week or the weather that day – all this is just a short task.
Bartenders know to be wary of gambling at the bar, so this one was watching me like a hawk to make sure I wasn’t looking up the answer on my phone or something. He didn’t seem to suspect my glasses, and even if he did, it wouldn’t have mattered. Even closely inspected, the G1s offer no indication of electronics of any kind: no USB port, no flashing lights, no visible controls.
The AI agent is activated by a subtle tap behind the ear. Repeating the question sends the AI searching for the answer, presented in a display invisible to everyone except the wearer. You can do the same with a pair of Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses or audio-only smart glasses with AI.
I don’t like to trick people, so I ended up telling the bartender what was going on and didn’t accept the drink, but it got me thinking about what people more nefarious than me could do (and probably already do) with AI smart glasses.
Just imagine what I did on a higher level: a team of hustlers in a bar who silently tapped their temples every time “which actor played…?” we asked if Never lose. The stakes are quite modest, but not difficult to imagine. Hypothetically, a pair of hacked smart glasses could be programmed to read the cards in your poker hand and give you the probability of winning in real time, either through the screen or by whispering in your ear. They could, hypothetically, make card counting in blackjack easy and undetectable. Going further, hypothetically, the glasses could scan other players to “tell” they’re bluffing, or read micro-expressions to give a constantly updated readout on opponents.
Along the same lines, imagine attending a support meeting and the leader, whom you have never met, tells you, “I had a vision about you” and begins to describe exactly something that happened in your life. All it would take is glasses recognizing your face (supposedly coming from Meta Displays) connecting to a social media feed, which would then be displayed in real time to the leader. Or you can go more subtly and create little “chances” like mentioning a movie someone recently saw and getting their exact opinion. All it would take is a few of these and maybe a mystical message to convince people that you are a divine being that they should definitely donate to.
How to spot tricky smart glasses
I could go on, but you get the idea. Fortunately, there are some clues that someone is using hidden technology in their glasses. The most important thing is a general understanding of the possibilities of this technology. If someone seems to know something they shouldn’t, ask yourself if their glasses could be the source of their power. Here are some more specific gifts.
Look for identifiable types of smart glasses
Credit: Meta
The most popular display style glasses, Meta Ray-Ban displays, have a distinctive appearance, with a fairly obvious camera in one of the corners and a specific look and branding. But other types of smart glasses, like the Even Realities G1 mentioned above, are obscure enough that most won’t recognize them, and look so “normal” that most people wouldn’t remove them from the lineup.
Find where the technology is hidden
Most smart glasses are still quite bulky, so look for thick temples or frames where the wires are hidden. But again, it’s only most smart glasses; some are totally elegant, with imperceptible technology.
What do you think of it so far?
Look for a little reflection
In most situations, the display glasses’ display is only visible to the wearer of the glasses, but some light is still projected. In a dark room, you can see a green glow, and even if it’s not dark, the viewports are visible if the light hits it just right, as you can see here:
Credit: Stephen Johnson
But honestly, it’s subtle and hard to spot.
Listen to the sounds
Older models of audio-only smart glasses can provide information to wearers, but open-air speakers mean some of the sound radiates into the atmosphere. You can definitely hear the smart glasses if you’re in a quiet room and try to do so. If it is noisy, the operating glasses become problematic for the wearer.
Find the source of control
Smart glasses need to be controlled somehow. Meta Display glasses work with a bracelet. The G1 glasses’ AI agent is activated by pressing the frames behind your ear. Anyone who practices for a few hours may make these movements seem natural, but they are there if you know what to look for.
Strange movements and speech
It is not necessary to have advanced stage experience to operate this type of glasses imperceptibly, but it is necessary something. Testimonials may include small glances up to see the screen, tapping on glasses, stilted speech while waiting for information to come in, and a conversational style of reading from a teleprompter. Watch for people who repeat their questions. But understand, it’s hard to spot. When I was scamming my bartender, I thought the way I repeated the question was obvious, but my wife said I just looked a little weird, which suits the personality of a trivia whiz anyway.
Smart glasses are powerful tools, like a hammer or a calculator. Like any innocent tool, they can be used for nefarious purposes. So until manufacturers or regulators require obvious indicators, like flashing lights or visible controls, we need to protect ourselves by paying attention to these small signals and remaining skeptical when someone seems to know more than they reasonably should.
