Norway's Smart Glasses Ban May Not Stop at Glasses. Apple Should Take Note
Norway has become the first major country to propose a temporary ban on smart glasses in selected public places. That's very relevant given my recent pieces on Apple's Audio Intelligence features and the rumoured Visual Intelligence features in future AirPods Pro.
Norway's centre-left government said it will bring a bill to Parliament soon covering public places, parks, beaches, schools, kindergartens and the like. It isn't seeking a total ban, apparently. Private use would still be allowed and it's considering exceptions for vulnerable groups so that “socially beneficial uses” can continue.
Digitalisation Minister Torgeir Micaelsen said that a temporary ban would allow time for a full assessment and debate that can lay the foundation for permanent regulation.
More from Micaelsen:
“We do not want a society where people are concerned about hidden audio recordings, photography and filming in places and situations where they are used to being without being monitored. Such a society can be experienced as unsafe and cause us to withdraw.”
Oslo’s schools already banned smart glasses earlier this year and Equinor, Norway's largest company, has banned them from its offices and offshore facilities. Australia's federal government is weighing a ban in public service workplaces, and several of their councils already ban them from leisure centres, pools and playgrounds. Courts in several countries, including those in England and Wales, are confiscating such glasses at the door.
By contrast, California's governor Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill that last week that would have penalised using smart glasses to record people without permission, in places like changing rooms and doctors' offices. Newsom penned a letter explaining his decision, saying that the bill's definition of wearable recording devices was too broad — he wrote that the bill's definition of 'wearable recording device' "could include certain smartwatches or other worn devices widely used in public spaces and capable of recording which could lead to significant confusion and unintended consequences."
The Norwegian government hasn't decided which devices a ban will cover. It's looking at glasses with cameras and microphones, glasses with AI features and potentially other body-worn devices capable of recording or AI functions. Apple's Visual Intelligence features are reportedly heading to future AirPods Pro; its 'Siri Recap' and 'Live Rewind' Audio Intelligence features are coming to Apple Watch in beta later this year — these features maybe precursors to technologies that will be embedded into the smart glasses Apple is heavily rumoured to be working on.
The point I've made previously is that Apple can explain the technicalities as much as it likes and still lose the public perception battle. What matters isn't what the cameras and microphones technically do, but what everyone around the wearer imagines they're doing. And Apple may do everything in its power to protect the privacy of the people wearing these products, but what about the privacy of the people around them?
