Image source: futurism.com
A concerning trend has emerged in China, where students are utilizing smart glasses to aid in cheating during exams, leading to a significant rise in the rental market for these devices. Reports suggest that this situation is not only impacting academic honesty but also creating profitable opportunities for students who lease their smart glasses to classmates in need.
As noted by Rest of World, a student named Vivian employs her Rokid AI glasses to scan exam questions and project answers onto the glasses’ built-in display. While Meta’s Ray-Ban Display glasses are currently only available in the United States, alternatives such as Rokid can be easily found worldwide.
Vivian exemplifies entrepreneurial spirit by renting her smart glasses to other students, transforming her initial purchase into a successful side venture. The surge in artificial intelligence has greatly boosted the smart glasses market, enabling users to take photos, record videos, translate text, navigate, and read scripts effortlessly.
Due to the high price tag of these devices, many students in China are opting for rentals instead of outright purchases. Rental costs typically range from about $6 to $12 per day, depending on the model, according to Rest of World. This trend has facilitated access to technology that enhances students’ ability to cheat during examinations.
Students utilize a discreet ring-shaped controller to interact with the glasses, allowing them to secretly respond to questions in subjects such as English and mathematics. Ke Changsi, a businessman located in Shenzhen, confirmed that he rents out Rokid and Quark smart glasses specifically for this purpose, highlighting the increasing demand among students for such devices.
In light of this cheating trend, China’s education authorities have taken measures to ban the use of smart glasses in national college entrance and civil service examinations. However, many educators remain unaware of the issue, as the latest models from companies like Rokid and Meta closely resemble conventional eyewear, making them hard to detect.
Despite their benefits, smart glasses have some drawbacks. They tend to be considerably heavier than standard glasses and require frequent recharging due to limited battery life. Nonetheless, they have proven effective in giving students an unfair advantage during tests. A recent study by researchers at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology incorporated OpenAI’s advanced GPT-5.2 language model into Rokid glasses. A student involved in this experiment achieved an impressive score of 92.5 on a challenging final exam, placing among the top five in a class of over 100 students.
This emerging trend prompts significant questions regarding the future of academic integrity and technology’s role in education. As smart glasses continue to advance, it will be essential to observe how educational institutions respond to these changes and what strategies they will employ to uphold fairness in assessments.
