In this episode of AI-Curious, Jeff Wilser sits down with AnhPhu Nguyen, one of the Harvard students behind the I-XRAY, a controversial pair of hacked Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses that use facial recognition technology to identify people in real-time, revealing personal details like names and home addresses.

AnhPhu discusses the ethical motivations behind the project, emphasizing how it was designed to raise awareness of AI privacy and surveillance risks rather than for profit. Together, they unpack the privacy issues, ethical implications, and the potential for policy changes in AI surveillance.

• [0:00] – Viral story of AI-driven facial recognition glasses

• [2:15] – Meet AnhPhu Nguyen: Harvard student and co-creator of the I-XRAY

• [5:07] – The project’s origin and purpose: Raising awareness on AI privacy

• [8:43] – How the I-XRAY works: Combining smart glasses, facial recognition, and AI

• [15:02] – The ethics of AI surveillance: Privacy vs. convenience

• [18:02] – Reactions from tech companies: Meta and PimEyes’ response

• [19:10] – Advice to developers on ethical tech design and responsible AI

• [22:36] – What’s next for AnhPhu: Exploring ethical boundaries in future tech

This conversation explores crucial questions around AI-driven surveillance, responsible tech development, and what needs to change in policy to avoid a dystopian future. If you’re interested in AI, privacy, and the future of ethical tech, this episode sheds light on how these issues intersect and what we need to consider moving forward.

AnhPhu's original Twitter/X post that went viral:
https://x.com/AnhPhuNguyen1/status/1840786336992682409

AnhPhu Nguyen and Caine Ardayfio's paper on how to make yourself "unsearchable":
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iWCqmaOUKhKjcKSktIwC3NNANoFP7vPsRvcbOIup_BA/preview

AnhPhu Nguyen on Twitter/X:
https://x.com/AnhPhuNguyen1

Caine Ardayfio on Twitter/X:
https://x.com/CaineArdayfio

Forbes:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/daveywinder/2024/10/04/these-2-hackers-have-created-real-x-ray-specs/

Original coverage from The Register:
https://www.theregister.com/2024/10/04/harvard_engineer_meta_smart_glasses/

The New York Times coverage:
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/24/technology/facial-recognition-glasses-privacy-harvard.html

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