Microsoft Strikes Landmark Soil Carbon Credit Deal With Indigo Carbon to Boost Carbon-Negative Goal 
South Korea Seeks Favorable U.S. Tariff Terms on Memory Chip Imports 
Nvidia Denies Upfront Payment Requirement for H200 AI Chips Amid China Export Scrutiny 
SK Hynix to Invest $13 Billion in Advanced Chip Packaging Plant as AI Memory Demand Surges 
Zhipu AI Launches GLM-Image Model Trained on Huawei Chips, Boosting China’s AI Self-Reliance Drive 
TikTok Expands AI Age-Detection Technology Across Europe Amid Rising Regulatory Pressure 
China Halts Shipments of Nvidia H200 AI Chips, Forcing Suppliers to Pause Production 
Trump Pushes Tech Giants to Absorb AI Data Center Power Costs, Citing Microsoft Changes 
Anthropic Appoints Former Microsoft Executive Irina Ghose to Lead India Expansion 
Taiwan Issues Arrest Warrant for OnePlus CEO Over Alleged Illegal Recruitment Activities 
Publishers Seek to Join Lawsuit Against Google Over Alleged AI Copyright Infringement 
California Attorney General Orders xAI to Halt Illegal Grok Deepfake Imagery 
TSMC Set to Post Record Q4 Profit as AI Chip Demand Accelerates 
Trump Administration Approves Nvidia H200 AI Chip Sales to China Under New Export Rules 
Micron to Buy Powerchip Fab for $1.8 Billion, Shares Surge Nearly 10% 
xAI Restricts Grok Image Editing After Sexualized AI Images Trigger Global Scrutiny 
Google has yet to address the lack of a security feature based on facial recognition. But new pieces of evidence were spotted recently, and they seem to be pointing at the possible return of the Face Unlock function on the Pixel 6 Pro.
Tech fans had high expectations of the Pixel 6 series, thanks to several leaks that were published months before the phones were announced. Most of them were met and most leaked details were proven accurate, but Face Unlock was one crucial feature that was rumored to return. However, when Google announced the Pixel 6 series in October, the company confirmed both devices will only rely on fingerprint sensors for their biometric authentication system.
However, 9To5Google recently analyzed the Android 12L Beta codes and reported that there are some references made to a facial recognition function, suggesting the possibility of Face Unlock’s return. The Android 12L Beta’s Settings app reportedly hints at biometric settings that would allow users to unlock devices with fingerprint, facial recognition, or both. One string code reads: <string name=”biometric_settings_use_face_or_fingerprint_preference_summary”>Using face or fingerprint</string>.
The same report noted that Android 12L Beta has codes in the camera software that seemingly refers to a facial recognition authentication system as an “experimental” feature for the 2021 Pixel phone. While the presence of these codes suggests there is a chance for the Pixel 6 Pro to get Face Unlock, its categorization as an “experimental” work also hints at a possibility that it may never launch on the latest Google smartphones.
The publication noted that should Google release Face Unlock in another Feature Drop, it might not be available on the standard Pixel 6. The report pointed out that the codes related to Face Unlock were only mentioned for the Pixel 6 Pro.
Meanwhile, this is not the first time that Android codes implied Google once considered launching the Pixel 6 phones with Face Unlock. Developer Freak07 reported (via XDA Developers) in November that the Pixel 6 PowerHAL config file was modified last July to include codes for Face Unlock, which was internally called “Tuscany.” It is then possible that previous leaks about the Face Unlock’s return were somewhat accurate until Google decided to scrap the feature before the launch of the Pixel 6 series.
Photo by Triyansh Gill on Unsplash
