Getting your
Trinity Audioplayer ready...In the run-up to this year’s Burning Man, the event’s official guide has been tweaked to make clear that wearers of AI glasses can’t record video without the permission of everyone in view.
“Before using any device — including cellphones, cameras, or smart eyewear — you must ask and receive permission from anyone who may appear in your frame, whether they are the main subject or in the background,” says the survival guide for the 2026 event, Aug. 31-Sept. 7 in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert.
It has long been the policy at Burning Man that participants can’t take photos or video of other people without their consent.
On the Burning Man subreddit, suggestions for dealing with wearers of Meta glasses and similar devices ranged from education (“Did you know you have to ask permission?”) to public shaming (“‘Perv glasses’ with a megaphone”) and into more confrontational tactics.
In recent years, Burning Man has drawn about 70,000 people to the playa 100 miles north of Reno. Tickets are still available on the event’s website, for $675 and up.
The recent wildfires in Washoe County have not affected the immediate area of Black Rock Desert, but those traveling to the event have been asked to be mindful of the fires’ impact on Reno’s infrastructure and its residents.