let us tell you

how our story began

the legend

our roots

Argo Panoptes is a figure from Greek mythology, a giant who was assigned the task of watching over and protecting the sacred cow of Hera, the Greek goddess of marriage and family. The name ‘Panoptes’ means ‘all-seeing’, because Argos had a hundred eyes that allowed him to watch over every corner of the surrounding land. However, his guard was interrupted when the Greek god Hermes, the messenger of the gods, stole Hera’s sacred cow from him. Hermes then killed him with a stone, causing Argo Panoptes to end up as a celestial constellation, represented by hundreds of bright stars.

According to legend, the death of Argo Panoptes was celebrated by the local farmers because it freed the land from his constant surveillance and allowed them to live in peace. However, this mythological story is also an allegory of power and its fragility: even the most powerful guardian can be defeated by a cunning and unpredictable adversary, as Hermes demonstrates with his theft. The figure of Argo Panoptes has been used in numerous works of art and literature, such as in Aeschylus’ Greek tragedy ‘Prometheus Chained’ and Ovid’s ‘The Metamorphoses’.

the dystopian panopticon

under the big brother

The Panopticon prison is a model prison structure devised by the British philosopher Jeremy Bentham in the 18th century. The idea behind the Panopticon is to create a prison in which inmates are constantly watched, without being able to know when they are being observed. The Panopticon envisages a circular structure with a central tower in which the guards are located, surrounded by a series of cells, each with a window looking towards the tower. In this way, the inmates cannot know when they are being monitored and are therefore constantly ‘self-monitored’.

The Panopticon prison has been used as a model for the design of other institutions, such as schools, psychiatric hospitals and factories. Its idea of constant surveillance and self-containment has also inspired some social and political theories, such as Michel Foucault’s ‘surveillance society’. However, the Panopticon has also been criticised for its implications on privacy and individual freedom, which could be compromised by constant and ubiquitous surveillance.

and now is our turn

our heritage ... future

Inspired by our historical roots, our desire was to revive the Greek myth contextualised in the era in which we live ‘The Digital Age’. The need for data protection, which has become the fourth most important factor in production, prompted us to revive the myth, this time giving it a mission to protect citizens.

Thanks to our technologies, we support companies in configuring ethical systems that respect the fundamental principles of the human being by avoiding unlawful processing that could compromise the whole person.

It is of paramount importance to ensure technological governance within the old continent by balancing it with respect for fundamental human principles through an ethical and sustainable approach.

Opticon, which sees everything, fights the dark sides that technology can bring.