🦆 DuckDuckGo has announced its own sunglasses in protest to AI-enabled smartglasses with cameras and microphones
🕶️ They’re called “Normal F* ****** Sunglasses“, retail for $35 and are simply just a pair of sunglasses
😎 DuckDuckGo’s glasses come with Knockaround’s Paso Robles frame design, offer polarized lenses and have UV400 protection
📈 The glasses may well be in short supply already, as the brand says a significant percentage of its inventory has sold
DuckDuckGo has announced it’s selling some new “anti-surveillance” sunglasses as it throws some shade at the array of other smartglasses that are cropping up these days.
Via CNET, the search engine announced its “Normal F* ****** Sunglasses“ in a post on X, and is making the point that AI-enabled glasses with cameras and microphones don’t respect your privacy. The best way it sees to protest against them is simply to not buy them.
A DuckDuckGo representative told CNET that the brand sees “new wave of AI glasses as yet another privacy-invasive technology from Big Tech, so we created a satirical campaign around them and released Normal F****** Sunglasses.”
The reason for doing so: “Because ultimately, the only truly privacy-respecting glasses are ones without cameras, mics, or AI listening in on you and others you come into contact with.”
The representative noted that DuckDuckGo CEO Gabriel Weinberg has publicly said that “AI surveillance should be banned while there is still time.”
The glasses come with Knockaround’s Paso Robles frame design, which carries a similar look to Ray-Ban’s trendy Wayfarer design with a small DuckDuckGo logo. They also offer polarized lenses and UV400 protection.
The website also notes they have zero cameras, guarantee zero notifications and an “infinite charge life” in further digs at Meta and its contemporaries. If you want a pair, you’ll need to hand over $35.
There are some smart glasses that don’t have any form of cameras, such as the Even Realities G2, although most pairs tend to feature cameras, mics, and on-board AI for when you need it.
If you want a pair, you may want to get in quick, as the representative told CNET that “a significant percentage of the inventory has sold, though it’s still too early to release sales data.”
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Reece Bithrey is a journalist with bylines for Trusted Reviews, Digital Foundry, PC Gamer, TechRadar and more. He also has his own blog, UNTITLED, and graduated from the University of Leeds with a degree in International History and Politics in 2023.