Programmer Stijn Spanhove from Belgium has created an AR app to detect and block ads in real life. The IT-guy showed how his development works in a video.
Programmer Stijn Spanhove from Belgium has created an AR app to detect and block ads in real life. The IT-guy showed how his development works in a video.
The AdBlock application works using augmented reality glasses, writes Tom’s Hardware.
Using Gemini AI, the app identifies ads and brands that are visible through the smart glasses. It then blocks them and replaces them with a red square.
In the video below, you can see the glasses in action: the app correctly identifies and visually blocks advertisements on posters, billboards, newspapers, and even brands on food packaging.
🚫🕶️ I’ve been building an XR app for a real-world ad blocker using Snap @Spectacles. It uses Gemini to detect and block ads in the environment.
— Stijn Spanhove (@stspanho) June 19, 2025
It’s still early and experimental, but it’s exciting to imagine a future where you control the physical content you see. pic.twitter.com/ySkFfF6rxS
The project is still in its early stages of development, but the programmer plans to add the ability to replace the bright red with your own photos or from the app’s list.
The app is built on Snap’s libraries and APIs, which the company shares on GitHub, so it’s an exclusive development for the fifth-generation Snap Spectacles AR glasses. Apple Vision Pro and Meta Quest owners will have this option available at a later date.
