08/14/2023

Silicon Valley's Latest Hype

Eyeball-scanning silver orbs to confirm you're human

Silicon Valley has a new shiny toy.

It's a silver orb outfitted with eyeball-scanning cameras intended to distinguish humans from machines in the era of ever-developing artificial intelligence.

In an office in Santa Monica, Calif., I sit on a small couch waiting to prove my humanity, peering directly at a spherical object that has been compared to a "decapitated robot head."

I take out my phone to pull up the orb's app and thumb quickly through the disclaimers. I'm at least 18 years old. I agree, though with some real trepidation, that the company can siphon up my biometric data.

About 15 seconds later, the orb emits a few high-pitched chime sounds to indicate that the photos of my irises have authenticated me.

Please select this link to read the complete article from NPR.