Meta has filed a patent for an AI device that listens to when a person laughs and sighs in order to track their mood.
The filing with the United States Patent and Trademarks Office, which was published on 2 July, describes an “apparatus” powered by artificial intelligence that can surveil a user and their location in order to “quantify the user’s emotional state” at any given time.
“Personal emotional metrics are displayed to the user to give them insights on themselves,” the patent states.
“An emotional-state machine learning model may interpret verbal and nonverbal cues to determine emotional indicators.”
It gives an example of a user using “passive language while on a video call from home”, which is picked up by an AI-powered device and analysed.
This is then used to offer insights into a person’s emotional state during a certain period, for example telling them: “You’ve expressed more gratitude this month.”
Patent analysis publication Patentlyze, who first reported on the filing, described it as “one of the more consequential patents Meta has filed in recent memory” due to the continuous voice collection tied to location, activity, and app usage.
“The fitness coaching framing is thin cover for a system that is fundamentally about persistent emotional surveillance,” the publication wrote. “That deserves more public attention than most patent filings get.”
Meta’s patent filing has also raised concerns from privacy advocates, who fear the data tracking of the Facebook and Instagram owner could be used for insidious purposes.
With billions of users worldwide, the US tech giant already monitors user behaviour across the internet in order to build detailed profiles on interests and habits in order to serve them more targeted ads – which account for more than 97 per cent of the firm’s revenue.
“This creepy patent appears to be part of Meta’s grand plans to monitor every aspect of our lives in order to profit off of ads targeted to users’ emotional vulnerabilities,” Josh Golin, executive director of tech advocacy group Fairplay, said in a statement shared with the NYPost.
“For impressionable young people, this is particularly worrisome and speaks to why privacy legislation that limits data collection and bans targeted ads to minors is so desperately needed.”
The Independent has reached out to Meta for comment, though the company typically does not remark on patent filings or unreleased products.
