The next time you want to buy a pack of cigarettes from a vending machine in Japan,  you might actually come across a machine that utilize face recognition technology.

The Ministry of Finance has approved cigarette vending machines that use face recognition technology to determine whether the purchaser is a minor or not.

The vending machines, which determine a person’s approximate age from the size of their eyes and mouth and their bone structure, were developed by Kyoto Prefecture company Fujitaka Co., a major producer of vending machines.

With face-recognition technology, users will be able to purchase cigarettes without a taspo card. There are already 5,000 such machines in operation across Japan.

Source: Mainichi Japan

I was wondering … what if the kid had a big head? Then maybe the machine might mistake him/her for an adult.