Meta’s proposed pilot with the Gujarat government to use Ray-Ban Meta AI glasses for visually impaired people remains at the letter-of-intent stage.

State departments are still reviewing the proposal, while privacy lawyers warn always-on wearable cameras and overseas data processing could raise issues under India’s data law.

Under India’s Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, processing personal data by private companies and government bodies generally requires consent that is free, specific, informed, unconditional, and unambiguous.

The law requires notice on what data is collected, why it is used, and how consent can be withdrawn.

This matters because the glasses’ AI features involve off-device processing. Photos and videos captured through the glasses are typically imported to Meta’s mobile app by default. Voice interactions with Meta AI are saved by default, according to an Electronic Frontier Foundation analysis.

US-based processing may pose more of a regulatory risk than an immediate legal barrier. The DPDP Act allows transfers abroad by default unless India later imposes restrictions.

The law applies to government bodies in principle, though it provides exceptions in some cases.

This has prompted calls for data protection impact assessments, limits on data retention, and separate consent for AI training.

🔗 Source: The Economic Times

Recent Meta developments