# "I loved this AI": Judge impressed by AI avatar of accident victim and Meta's facial recognition for smart glasses The 404 Media Podcast discusses two main topics: a case where an AI-generated avatar of a deceased person "testified" in court, and Meta's plans to integrate facial recognition technology into Ray-Ban smart glasses. The hosts, Jason Koebler, Matthew Galt, Joseph Cox, Sam Cole, and Emmanuel Mayberg, critically analyze the technical and ethical implications of both developments. ### 1. AI avatar of road accident victim "testified" in court In a court case involving a fatal road accident, an AI-generated avatar of the victim, Christopher Pelkey, was presented. The avatar spoke in the first person and even forgave the perpetrator. The judge reacted enthusiastically: "I loved this AI. Thank you for that." Jason Koebler expressed surprise: "I'm very rarely shocked by anything with AI, but I thought: 'Oh my God, I can't believe this was accepted.'" ### 2. The avatar was created by family members, not by the deceased The victim's sister, Stacy Wales, wrote the text herself and created the AI avatar with her husband. It was not the actual words of the deceased, but an interpretation by the family. "Our goal was to make the judge cry. Our goal was to bring Chris to life and humanize him," the sister explained in an interview with 404 Media. ### 3. Meta plans facial recognition for smart glasses despite previous criticism According to a report in "The Information," Meta is working on facial recognition technology for its Ray-Ban smart glasses, despite the company having previously criticized similar projects. Meta is even considering removing the warning light that indicates when the glasses are recording. "After all the coverage of the students and Meta's little outrage about it – well, well, well – they're still building facial recognition into the glasses," a host summarized. ### 4. Students had already combined facial recognition with the glasses Two Harvard students had previously developed a concept called "Eye X-Ray," which combined Meta glasses with the facial recognition service PimEyes to identify strangers in real-time. Meta had distanced itself from the project at the time. "They basically built an instant doxxing device," Joseph Cox described the technology. ## Breakdown The podcast illustrates two disturbing developments at the intersection of AI technologies and societal acceptance. Particularly problematic is the judge's uncritical enthusiasm for the AI avatar, which could create a dangerous precedent for the use of fictional "testimony" in legal proceedings. The hosts correctly point out that the avatar did not convey the actual words of the deceased, but rather a fiction constructed by the family – a fact that was apparently accepted uncritically in the trial. The discussion about Meta's facial recognition plans reveals a typical pattern of technology companies: publicly criticizing problematic applications while developing similar products. The hosts convincingly demonstrate how companies like Meta rhetorically deflect criticism only to introduce controversial technologies later. The possible removal of the warning light, in particular, suggests a deliberate attempt to conceal the surveillance function. The podcast offers an important critical perspective on the increasing normalization of potentially invasive technologies, with the journalistic persistence of the 404 Media team standing out against the PR strategies of tech companies. Listening recommendation: The podcast is a valuable source of information for anyone who wants to understand the societal implications of new AI and surveillance technologies, particularly their problematic application in sensitive areas like the legal system.