No smart glasses while you're driving in Illinois

If you're planning a road trip to Illinois, you should leave your smart glasses in the glove box.

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Ray-Ban Meta glasses
Driving with a pair of these could soon get you a fine in Illinois | Image by Meta
If you're planning a road trip to Illinois, you should leave your smart glasses in the glove box. The state passed a bill that outlaws "artificial intelligence smart glasses" from the road. The bill is waiting for Illinois Governor JB Pritzker's signature and could make the state the first to ban the use of smart glasses while driving.

Smart glasses will be treated like cell phones on the road



The change in the driving laws in Illinois will make using smart glasses similar to using a smartphone while driving. You could still use smart glasses provided you're parked or in neutral, let's say in traffic, but if caught using the glasses on the move, you're in for a $75 fine for a first offense and up to $150 per offense for repeated violations.

If you crash while using smart glasses and cause injuries or death, the fine starts at $1,000.



The bill could still be vetoed


Governor Pritzker can, of course, veto the bill and give smart glasses a pass. The governor has a mixed record when it comes to bills and legislation concerning the tech industry.

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Pritzker is poised to sign another bill that will tighten the restriction on social networks, and the aim is to make the online space safer for kids and teenagers.

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The grip around social networks is tightening



The world seems to be changing. Last week Texas banned under-18s from having an Apple account. And just this week, in an unprecedented move, the UK Prime Minister announced that the country is banning social media for under 16s.

The goal is to protect the vulnerable population from the dreads of social networks, from the infinite scrolling to harmful and inappropriate content. I'm not sure if such restrictions will result in a positive outcome; we all know that the forbidden fruit is the sweetest one, and teenagers are pretty resourceful when it comes to technology.

Smart glasses made headlines recently



Meanwhile, smart glasses, and Ray-Ban Meta in particular, have been making headlines recently. Our colleagues at Wired found lines of code in the Meta AI app suggesting the company is testing facial recognition tech on the glasses.

Soon after that, a new report showed that Meta licensed facial recognition software from a company called Rank One Computing. This firm is a Pentagon contractor and has ties with agencies such as the FBI and CIA, including former members in key positions in the company.
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