Ring's latest Super Bowl ad left many concerned across social media, as the spot watched by millions showed off a controversial and 'creepy' new feature that is far more than it initially seems.
It was inevitable that the rapid development of artificial intelligence would go hand-in-hand with increased global surveillance, but many might not have expected it to be led by the actions of individuals instead of a government.
That's exactly what's happening with Ring doorbells though – at least, according to the company's recent Super Bowl advert – as the Amazon-owned gadget manufacturer proudly displayed a 'creepy' and dystopian new feature under the guise of it being a helpful community tool.
It wasn't the only Super Bowl advert to receive backlash, as Serena Williams was 'slammed' for her promotion of weight-loss jabs, but few reflect the concerning state of current technology more than this new doorbell feature.
Advert
The 30-second advert shows off a new feature known as 'Search Party' through the lens of a lost pet, which is something that many across America can empathize with or even directly relate to.
Previously you'd have to put up potentially hundreds of flyers detailing your dog's details, and even go searching around a wide area in the hopes of spotting your animal friend, yet now you can access the doorbell cameras of everyone in your area, using AI to scan for potential matches of your dog.
At surface value this is an incredibly useful feature that will save people plenty of time and stress when searching for lost pets, but that's likely not what it will be exclusively used for, especially when similar tools have shown the ability to identify people using AI.
"Are we really supposed to believe that the main intent for this is lost pets," writes one concerned viewer on YouTube, with another chiming in to argue that "this is like the commercial they show at the beginning of a dystopian sci-fi film to quickly show people how bad things have gotten."
The feature itself will be turned on by default – which means that many people won't even know that their devices are being used to scan every individual and animal that passes by – and the numbers that Ring proudly parades aren't even that impressive either.
It claims that 10 million pets go missing every single year, yet now 'more than a dog a day' is found with Search Party, meaning that around 27,396 pets aren't found on a daily basis despite the proliferation of Ring cameras across America.
It's not just average people that are concerned about this advert either, as privacy experts have also spoken out against the new feature.
Speaking to 404 Media, Chris Gilliard – the writer of upcoming book Luxury Surveillance – notes that the advert is "a clumsy attempt by Ring to put a cuddly face on a rather dystopian reality: widespread networked surveillance by a company that has cozy relationships with law enforcement and other equally invasive surveillance companies."