- John Catsimatidis is the owner of New York City supermarket chain Gristedes Foods.
- The billionaire made headlines this week after telling The New York Times that he used Clearview AI, a controversial facial recognition software that is supposedly only available to law enforcement, to identify a man his daughter was on a date with.
- Catsimatidis is an outspoken supporter of President Donald Trump, a major Republican donor, and hosts a political talk show.
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Many billionaires are serious about their personal security, but few are as outspoken about it as John Catsimatidis.
Catsimatidis, who made his fortune running a chain of New York City-area grocery stores, said in 2018 that he installed infrared sensors at his house in the Hamptons and sleeps with the same gun James Bond carried under his pillow.
On Thursday, Catsimatidis made headlines after telling The New York Times that he used Clearview AI, a controversial facial recognition software that is supposedly only available to law enforcement, to identify a man his daughter was on a date with. Catsimatidis confirmed to The Times that he had access to the app, which Clearview AI had previously said was only accessible by law enforcement.
The billionaire said he was friends with a Clearview AI founder, Richard Schwartz, and that he ran a trial project with the app at an East Side Gristedes that was having trouble with shoplifters stealing Häagen-Dazs.
Representatives for Catsimatidis at his grocery and energy conglomerate, Red Apple Group, did not immediately respond to Business Insider's requests for comment on Catsimatidis' net worth, personal history, career, and use of Clearview AI.