XPost: alt.privacy.anon-server, alt.anonymous   
   From: nobody@dizum.com   
      
   AI wearables are quietly recording everything. Is it legal? And do   
   you consent?   
      
   Warning, San Francisco: That cute necklace your coworker is wearing   
   might be recording you.   
      
   A crop of startups is selling stealthy AI-powered recording devices   
   and software that’s becoming increasingly popular across Silicon   
   Valley. Regardless of whether you’re in a contentious work meeting,   
   having coffee on a first date, or enjoying the wild abandon of a   
   house party, there’s a growing likelihood that someone is listening.   
      
   “My general sense is that we should assume we are being recorded at   
   all times,” said Clara Brenner, a partner at venture capital firm   
   Urban Innovation Fund. “Of course, this is a horrible way to live   
   your life.”   
      
   Some of these devices are wearables masquerading as fashionable   
   pendants, like those made by Limitless, or discreet lapel pins,   
   like those by Plaud. Bee has a device that resembles a Fitbit.   
   Others are apps that run quietly in the background of phones and   
   laptops, like Cluely, Granola, and OpenAI’s new ChatGPT Record   
   feature.   
      
   It can be hard to know when one is being used. Some devices flash   
   or light up when they’re recording; others glow when they’re   
   switched off. Most automatically generate AI transcripts and audio   
   recordings of everything with which their owner interacts.   
      
   Why would anyone voluntarily wear these roving surveillance   
   devices? It’s not necessarily to catch people saying things they’ll   
   regret. Enthusiasts report that the recorders help them stay   
   “present” in meetings, outsource busywork, and act as a perpetually   
   available collaborator.   
      
   But many who work in offices where the devices are becoming the   
   norm report that they have begun to self-censor, worried about   
   every offhand comment being etched into an AI-generated transcript.   
   Meanwhile, lawyers warn that it’s only a matter of time before   
   these nonconsensual records and audio files become liabilities in   
   court.   
      
   The always-listening crowd   
      
   For many in the tech industry, AI recording tools have become a way   
   of life.   
      
    ....   
      
      
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)