Meta is reportedly preparing to reintroduce facial recognition technology, this time embedding it directly into its Ray-Ban and Oakley smart glasses. According to reports from February 13, 2026, the feature is internally codenamed “Name Tag” and aims to help users identify people in their field of vision using Meta AI.
This move marks a significant shift from 2021, when Meta (then Facebook) shut down its photo-tagging facial recognition system and deleted over a billion face templates due to intense privacy concerns.
1. How “Name Tag” is Expected to Work
Unlike the “universal” facial recognition tools seen in dystopian fiction, Meta’s current proposal is more restricted:
• Social Graph Identification: The glasses may identify people the wearer is already connected to on Facebook or Instagram.
• Public Profile Discovery: There is also discussion about identifying strangers who have public Meta accounts, effectively pulling a “digital business card” into the wearer’s line of sight.
• AI-Powered Context: Meta’s built-in AI assistant would provide information about the person, such as their name or mutual interests.
• No “Universal” Search: Sources indicate Meta will not allow the glasses to identify any random person on the street without a prior digital connection or public consent.
2. A Controversial Timing Strategy
A leaked internal memo from Meta’s Reality Labs suggests that the company is timing this release strategically. The memo noted that the “dynamic political environment” in the U.S. might provide a window where civil society groups and privacy watchdogs are “focused on other concerns,” potentially softening the blow of the initial public backlash.
Meta had reportedly planned to debut the feature at a conference for the blind in 2025 to showcase its assistive benefits—such as helping the visually impaired identify people in a room—but the unveiling was delayed as the company weighed the legal and ethical risks.
3. The Privacy Safeguards (and Risks)
To address the inevitable “creep factor,” Meta is relying on existing hardware features:
• The Privacy LED: Meta Ray-Ban and Oakley glasses feature a small white LED that blinks when the camera is active.
• Opt-In Requirements: Newer reports suggest that individuals may only be identifiable if they have expressly consented to being recognizable in their own Meta privacy settings. If a person hasn’t opted in, the AI is designed to delete their biometric data “instantly.”
• Super-Sensing Prototypes: Beyond Name Tag, Meta is rumored to be working on “super-sensing” glasses that could maintain a continuous record of a wearer’s day, further pushing the boundaries of wearable privacy.
4. Facial Recognition: Meta’s Quiet Return
While “Name Tag” would be the first consumer-facing wearable application, Meta has already been using facial recognition behind the scenes. In late 2024 and throughout 2025, the company rolled out a system to detect celebrity-bait scam ads by comparing faces in ads against official profile photos. This system has since expanded to the UK, EU, and South Korea, signaling that Meta is once again comfortable with the technology’s utility.
Summary for the Busy:
• Feature: “Name Tag” facial recognition for smart glasses.
• Goal: Identify friends or public accounts via the Meta AI assistant.
• Privacy: Aims for an “opt-in” only model, but remains highly controversial.
• Hardware: Expected for Ray-Ban Meta and the new Oakley Performance models.