Outback Steakhouse’s Surveillance Program Will Monitor Staff | Eater

"At a Portland location of a national steakhouse chain, the restaurant is piloting “Presto Vision,” a machine-learning system that ties into existing cameras to analyze footage of staff working and interacting with guests and to send performance statistics to managers. Company statements say the software does not identify diners, does not use facial recognition, does not collect personal information, and deletes video within three days, but critics warn that such surveillance often creates a paranoid workplace, encourages managers to rely on automated monitoring rather than personal relationships, and can turn minor or unintentional slip-ups into potential grounds for discipline. The rollout is pitched as an efficiency measure, though employees’ privacy and morale concerns — and even tongue-in-cheek worries about tracking how fast patrons eat signature appetizers — persist." - Jaya Saxena