Australian company Xailient is bringing privacy-safe face recognition to Abode smart-home doorbells by processing data at the edge.

Orchestrait is claimed to be the world’s first privacy-safe face recognition technology that uses artificial intelligence (AI) at the edge to ensure compliance with biometric data and privacy laws across the world.

By processing data at the edge – locally at the smart home device – Orchestrait protects users’ personal information, reducing any transmission of data out of the user’s home to the cloud.

Xailient has partnered with California-based smart home security provider Abode Systems to bring Orchestrait integration to market. The Abode wireless video doorbells will feature face recognition at the edge, providing precise and accurate face recognition with privacy-safe technology.

Unlike edge technology, cloud-based facial recognition platforms process personal information centrally by sending data from homes and businesses to be analysed at data centres. The collection of visual data, particularly images depicting people, often raises privacy concerns. Orchestrait is designed to lower data collection and transfers to the cloud, therefore reducing vulnerability. It relies on a decentralised architecture to ensure no one party handles a critical mass of personal information at any point in time.

“Privacy is no longer just about protection from hackers, it extends to protection from corporate actors,” said Lars Oleson, CEO of Xailient. “Fundamentally, it’s about respecting consumer expectations and honouring their choices. Companies should now design their products for privacy, particularly where sensitive data are concerned.”

Orchestrait addresses privacy concerns by implementing and complying with the latest privacy frameworks, including: the EU and UK’s GDPR; the Illinois Biometric Information Protection Act (BIPA); and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).

“Orchestrait face recognition runs on the edge and only recognises users that have granted consent,” said Herman Yau, Xailient vice president. “Convenience and privacy are now both possible for our partners.”

Omer Tene, partner at Goodwin and senior fellow at the Future of Privacy Forum, added: “Responsible AI is no longer just a differentiator. Policymakers, regulators and, importantly, consumer expectations are requiring companies to design products and services with privacy best practices in mind.”

Xailient has partnered with Abode to bring privacy-safe face recognition into Abode’s video doorbells.

“Partnering with Xailient has allowed us to deliver advanced facial recognition while still protecting our customers’ privacy,” said Abode Systems CEO Chris Carney. “The Xailient team’s expertise in AI and strong focus on consumer data privacy gives us the ability to focus on our products and the implementation of different technologies to better serve our customers.”

By integrating Orchestrait, Abode hopes to uphold customers’ trust by protecting their data privacy in line with industry best practices, and mitigate compliance risks across all jurisdictions.