China issues voluntary AI smart glasses conduct code

TL;DR: China published a voluntary code of conduct for manufacturers of AI-equipped smart glasses, according to a report by the South China Morning Post. The code was released by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. It calls for visible camera-use notifications, user consent before filming people, limits on data collection, secure storage, on-device processing, and transparency on AI algorithms.

China published a voluntary code of conduct for manufacturers of AI-equipped smart glasses, according to the South China Morning Post. The report said the document came from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, which is part of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in China.

The voluntary code includes commitments to show clear notifications when a smart glasses camera is active and to push users to obtain consent before filming other people. The document also covers data collection and storage, and it calls on companies to prioritise on-device processing instead of cloud processing, limit data collection, keep devices secure, and disclose the AI algorithms they use.

The South China Morning Post said the code followed public backlash after videos of unsuspecting people were shared online from secret recordings made with smart glasses. Separately, Omdia said Mainland China was the fastest-growing smart glasses market in the world in 2025, with 950,000 units shipped and year-on-year growth of more than 3,500%. Omdia said Meta Platforms led globally, while Xiaomi, Rokid, and Alibaba were the top vendors in China.

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