Meta bricked the cameras on thousands of its AI glasses
Business Insider · 2026-09-02
Meta has permanently disabled the cameras on thousands of its AI glasses after detecting users tampering with the recording indicator lights. This enforcement action, announced following recent efforts to combat people drilling out or covering the tiny lights, impacted less than one tenth of a percent of all Meta AI glasses sold, according to the company. While Meta hasn't released total sales figures since the glasses launched in 2021, 7 million were sold in 2025 alone. The company is responding to a "fraught reputation" for the glasses, with CTO Andrew Bosworth claiming they are "the most privacy-forward camera" for consumers, and billboards in Los Angeles emphasizing the eyewear is "designed for everyone." A new software update closes a loophole that allowed users to cover the light after recording started; devices with drilled-out LEDs will never regain camera function, but those with covered lights will work again once the obstruction is removed. Meta's vice president of wearables, Alex Himel, stated on Threads that only a "tiny minority of people" were tampering with the hardware.