- Several UK hospitality venues have banned Meta's smart glasses over privacy concerns
- The AI glasses have built-in cameras and microphones raising fears of covert recording
- Renowned restaurateur Jeremy King opposes the use of recording glasses in his venues
In the United Kingdom, several hospitality and entertainment venues, including high-end restaurants, popular pub chains, and major theatres, have banned Meta's smart glasses due to privacy fears, The Guardian reported. The AI-powered eyewear, promoted heavily by celebrities like Kylie Jenner, looks similar to standard glasses but comes equipped with built-in cameras and microphones.
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Why Meta Glasses are getting banned
Business owners worry that these glasses allow wearers to record customers and staff without their knowledge or consent.
Jeremy King, who is a renowned restaurateur and owner of London venues including Simpsons in the Strand, Arlington and The Park, shared why guests should not wear the recording glasses.
"I would never knowingly allow any invasion of guest privacy other than with the eyes we were born with," he told the media outlet.As per reports, Soho House confirmed that its strict no-filming rule applies fully to smart glasses, meaning members and guests will be asked to take them off.
Tim Martin, chief executive of Wetherspoons, stated that filming people without permission violates their pub code. Customers wearing the glasses are expected to turn off the camera functionality inside.
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The general code that applies in our pubs, and most pubs, is that you can't film customers or employees without their permission. Meta glasses seem to breach this code and common sense by enabling surreptitious surveillance, so our instinct is to say turn off the cameras. This is akin to our efforts to stop audible playing of videos in our pubs, which also invades people's space," Martin said as quoted by the media outlet.
ATG Theatres, which operates major venues in London, Edinburgh, and Bristol, stated that visitors wearing smart glasses during live shows will be asked to remove them under standard anti-recording policies.
