Facial recognition technology becomes popular on animals in addition to humans

Facial recognition technology is becoming increasingly popular on animals, including pigs, cows, elephants, sheep, etc. according to a recent New York magazine report.

Cow [File photo: VCG]

According to the New York Magazine report, a Norwegian company is using facial recognition to capture and store the faces of millions of Atlantic salmon to help fight disease.

In addition, China is definitely leading the charge in livestock surveillance. Even the Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com is using facial recognition to monitor large groups of pigs to quickly detect metrics like age, weight, and diet.

Sheep [File photo: VCG]

The technology can also be used in fighting disease and preempting potential financial risks in case there is a large outbreak of an animal disease, like African swine fever.

However, the facial recognition technology is not easy to be used on animals. According to Yingzi Holding founder Chen Yaosheng, pigs prove significantly more difficult to surveil than humans for one pesky reason: "Humans would stay still in front of the camera, but pigs don't."

Pig [File photo: VCG]

According to market data, the global market scale of facial recognition in 2017 surpassed USD $4 billion, and is expected to reach USD $7.8 billion in 2022.