Meta is giving away 15,000 AI glasses to blind and visually impaired people in Ireland

Meta is handing over 15,000 Ray-Ban Meta glasses to Vision Ireland, the country's national sight loss charity. People would still have to register their interest on Vision Ireland's website, but the glasses will be distributed for free. Meta says those 15,000 pairs are enough for every blind and visually impaired adult the charity supports.

The company has been getting a lot of criticism for its AI glasses, because they could be used to surreptitiously film people without their consent. It doesn't help that there are services out there offering to disable their recording LEDs, which are supposed to light up if the user is actively recording. (Meta responded by promising to disable cameras in glasses whose recording LEDs have been tampered with or destroyed.) In addition, Wired recently found code in the Meta AI app, showing that the company is at least looking at the possibility of adding facial recognition to the devices.

Nevertheless, glasses like Meta's could be incredibly helpful for visually impaired individuals. They can read text out loud and identify objects in the user's surroundings. Users can have the glasses describe their environment to help them complete tasks more quickly and safely. They can have the glasses read messages for them and then ask Meta AI to send their replies. Meta also teamed up with the Be My Eyes network, so that users can call volunteers through their glasses. The Be My Eyes volunteers can then help them with simple tasks like choosing an outfit or finding the right kind of milk in the grocery.

Those interested in getting free Ray-Ban Meta glasses from Vision Ireland can register their interest through the charity's website or calling its dedicated phone number: +353 1 882 1910. Vision Ireland will be in charge of selecting eligible applicants and then providing them with in-person training and support.