There was a time when answering a phone call on the subway made you a social outlaw. Now, it’s not just calls, it’s AirPods shouting directions, smart glasses snapping photos, and voice assistants piping up in cafés. Technology has gone ambient, but manners haven’t caught up. In 2025, we’re all cyborgs to varying degrees. But being a polite cyborg? That’s the new frontier. As devices shrink and intelligence disperses into our wearables and environments, public tech etiquette is being rewritten on the fly.
“Politeness is the flower of humanity,” said Joseph Joubert. He never had to listen to someone argue with their AI in the oatmeal aisle.
What’s Changed?
We’re not just using tech-we’re wearing it, whispering to it, relying on it to navigate, work, flirt, and chill. And we’re doing all this in front of others. The line between private use and public performance has blurred into vapor.
New behaviors require new norms. So here’s what’s emerging:
Tip: Think Presence Over Performance
If your gadget makes someone else feel ignored, watched, or assaulted by sound-pause. Ask, Is this enhancing my life at the cost of someone else’s comfort?
Table: Old vs. New Tech Etiquette
| Old Rule | New Twist (2025 Edition) |
| Don’t talk loudly on the phone | Don’t narrate your schedule to your voice assistant |
| Don’t text at dinner | Don’t scroll your wristwatch when someone’s mid-story |
| Headphones = leave me alone | Smart glasses = clarify if you’re recording or not |
| Put your phone away during meetings | Silence your wearable too-it’s still a distraction |
Devices That Blur Boundaries
- AR glasses: Are they recording or just displaying a map?
- Voice assistants: Is the person muttering in the corner talking to you or to Siri?
- Smart rings: That constant tapping, is it Morse code or your Slack notifications?
- Ambient earbuds: Open-loop headphones let sound in.. but conversations out.
We’ve hit peak ambiguity. And ambiguity is bad for etiquette.
A Polite Joke
Why did the smart speaker get kicked out of the book club?
Because it kept answering rhetorical questions.
What Should Be the Norms?
Emerging tech etiquette experts and digital anthropologists (yes, that’s a thing now) suggest:
- Declare intent: “I’m just checking directions” goes a long way.
- Use transparency modes: Literally and metaphorically.
- Default to quiet: Choose vibrations, light cues, or gentle haptics in shared spaces.
- Establish zones: Some co-working spaces now have “no voice tech” zones.
- Consent matters: Recording or listening? Ask first.
Remember: just because your tech is invisible doesn’t mean your behavior is.
Final Reflection
Technology isn’t the problem. Opacity is. As devices disappear into our clothes and glasses and jewelry, we need to bring manners into the foreground.
So here’s the question:
If your tech fades into the background, can your empathy step into the spotlight?