Imagine a world in which you can scan your face to board a train, check into a hotel, order a meal at a café, or even track your food from farm to table. 

In China, all of this is already happening.

Facial recognition became more pervasive this year after the Chinese government in December 2017 announced an ambitious plan to achieve greater face-reading accuracy by 2020.

The country also plans to introduce a system that will identify any of its 1.3 billion citizens in just three seconds.

However, with great technology comes great responsibility — and critics are worried that amassing personal information could violate privacy or even pose a security risk.

Railway police in Zhengzhou became the first city in China to use facial-recognition eyewear to screen passengers. 

Security personnel at Zhengzhou East Railway Station have equipped the Google Glass-like accessories, which are capable of verifying passengers’ identities, spotting impostors, and even flagging suspected criminals. 

According to police, the glasses are connected to a database that can match passengers’ information to individuals wanted in connection with crimes. 

A professor at Sichuan University coupled two of China’s trendiest technologies —drones and facial recognition — to monitor students in his classroom.

He used a palm-sized drone to scan students’ faces, claiming the flying device could track attendance and analyze how closely students were following his lectures. 

A student has her face scanned before entering a university dormitory in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, Aug. 29, 2018.

Earlier this month, a tech company in the southwestern province of Guizhou landed in the national spotlight for its “smart” school uniforms. 

The company claimed that its microchipped clothes would help automate administrative activities such as monitoring students’ attendance, as well as managing their homework and grades. 

The uniforms would also be equipped with a GPS tracker, allowing schools to record when students enter and exit school grounds.

Chinese state media outlet Xinhua added two fresh faces to its roster of journalists this year: AI-powered news anchors. 

According to the news agency, the digital avatars of English-language anchor Zhang Zhao and his Chinese-language counterpart Qiu Hao will be used primarily in videos — especially for breaking news.

Police have apprehended an estimated 60 suspects from concert venues — the first fugitive in April in the eastern city of Nanchang, followed by subsequent arrests in Jiaxing and Chengdu, among other cities.

A facial recognition system used by police is demonstrated in Beijing

Meanwhile, in central Henan province, the city of Pingdingshan installed facial-recognition cameras near a river in August to help prevent drowning deaths. 

The city started the pilot project so that people — and especially children — who venture too close to the water will be warned via a loudspeaker. 

Have you ever used facial recognition technology?

Do you like it?

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Source / SixthTone

Writer / Clara

Designer / Amber