RoboCops vs. Crooks: Can AI Keep Our Streets Safe?

Welcome to this week’s Deep-Fried Dive with Fry Guy! In these long-form articles, Fry Guy conducts in-depth analyses of cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) developments and developers. Today, Fry Guy dives into AI’s growing role in policing. We hope you enjoy!

*Notice: We do not receive any monetary compensation from the people and projects we feature in the Sunday Deep-Fried Dives with Fry Guy. We explore these projects and developers solely to showcase interesting and cutting-edge AI developments and uses.*

Will we ever live in a world where human police officers are replaced by AI-powered robots?

I’m not talking about some 1987 film where RoboCop seeks to avenge his death, I’m talking about AI being used in creative ways to make our streets a safer place. This is happening all across the globe, and it is both exciting and a bit scary. Let’s fight some crime together!

AI SURVEILLANCE IN SAN FRAN

In recent years, San Francisco has seen rising rates of open-air drug dealing and sex trafficking among other crimes, like defacement and damage to public property. City officials have made numerous efforts to mitigate these incidents, but they have lacked sufficient surveillance in the large city. Last summer, San Francisco’s law enforcement leaders decided to take a new approach by rolling out AI-powered surveillance cameras, aimed at detecting and reducing crime in the city.

Manufactured by LiveView Technologies, these high-tech units are part of the city’s broader strategy to enhance public safety. They are equipped with advanced features like thermal and panoramic views, floodlights, and speakers for broadcasting warnings. Set up in high-crime areas, city officials hope that the cameras will act as both a deterrent to criminal activity and provide critical evidence for investigations and prosecutions.

Although these cameras aim to create safer neighborhoods and address growing concerns about public safety, objections have arisen over public privacy. Privacy advocates warn that increased surveillance could lead to governmental overreach, raising eyebrows about potential abuses. For instance, Matthew Guariglia, a senior policy analyst at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said, “Subjecting some of the most vulnerable populations in San Francisco to this dragnet surveillance is a ‘kitchen sink’ approach to public safety.” Many think it is unfair to citizens of the city that they are being watched at all times by AI cameras. As this program unfolds, balancing public safety with privacy rights will remain a key issue for the city and for AI’s role in surveillance of all kinds.

EYES IN THE SUBWAYS

If you find yourself in a New York City subway system, you may see some robots moving around the area that look like R2D2 from Star Wars. These robots are called K5, and they are actually fighting crime (kind of). The K5 garnered a lot of attention when it entered testing back in 2023, and it is now a full member of the New York Police Department (NYPD). Standing at 64.5” tall and weighing 420 pounds, K5 is equipped with four ultra-HD cameras, a thermal camera, LED lights, 16 microphones, and an amplified PA speaker. It autonomously patrols the subway, avoiding obstacles at a maximum speed of 3mph.

The NYPD rents K5 at $9 per hour from Knightscope, a company claiming crime reduction through its robots. But does the K5 really fight crime? After all, how hard is it to run away from a bot that can only move 3mph? The NYPD does not view K5 as a crime fighting robot in the way of using force. Rather, the NYPD argues that K5’s constant presence offers cost-effective surveillance, real-time data, and a visible deterrent. The K5 is able to detect crime quickly, alert authorities, and act as a mobile surveillance camera in the subways. Many subway riders find comfort in K5’s potential to deter criminals, notify reinforcements quickly, and enhance safety.

ROBO SPIDER-MAN

Wouldn’t it be nice if Spider-Man were patrolling our streets? We wouldn’t need to depend solely on the police force to stop crime. Whenever there was a crime, Spider-Man would come to our rescue, trapping the criminals in his webs! Well, we might not have Spider-Man coming to our rescue, but we are getting closer.

Last fall, footage from Hangzhou, China, captured an intriguing sight: spherical robots patrolling the streets alongside police officers. The robots, designed by Chinese robotics firm Logon Technology, are part of the RT-G series, described as a “technological breakthrough” for aiding law enforcement in challenging environments. The RT-G robots can operate on both land and water, reach speeds of 22 mph, and endure impacts of up to 8,818 pounds. Powered by advanced AI and equipped with facial recognition technology, these devices are designed to identify and immobilize criminals, enhancing public safety. In fact, the robot is capable of shooting nets at people to trap them until authorities arrive. Yes, this is real—these are real life robo-superheroes!

ROBO-DOGS VS DANGER

For a long time, we have had police dogs. These dogs have been useful for many tasks, including sniffing out drugs. However, over the past few years, the NYPD has been utilizing “Digidog,” a robotic dog equipped with AI vision and advanced mobility. The 70-pound remote-controlled robot is used in high-risk situations or hazardous environments, allowing officers and first responders to engage with those areas at reduced risk to themselves.

NYC Mayor Eric Adams has been actively supporting Digidog. He described, “If you have a barricaded suspect, if you have someone that’s inside a building that is armed, instead of sending police in there, you send Digidog in there. So these are smart ways of using good technologies.” But not everyone agrees with the deployment of this technology. Albert Fox Cahn, executive director of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, said: “The NYPD is turning bad science fiction into terrible policing. New York deserves real safety, not a knockoff RoboCop.” Only time will tell if these dogs are effective.

VEHICLE VOICE COMMANDS

A bottleneck in the policing industry is the communication of critical information. Many police officers are still using staticky radios, generalized beeps and tones, and searching on laptops to figure out critical information for immediate action. AI is hoping to help make this process more seamless.

Rekor Systems and SoundHound AI are teaming up to revolutionize emergency vehicle communication technology. The partnership between Rekor and SoundHound brings together Rekor Scout®, a state-of-the-art vehicle recognition system, and SoundHound’s advanced voice AI technology to create a fully hands-free experience for law enforcement and first responders. This integration allows officers to control essential vehicle systems, such as automatic license plate recognition (ALPR), emergency lights, and radios, simply by using voice commands. One major enhancement is the replacement of generic audio alerts with natural language notifications. Instead of relying on beeps or tones, officers will now receive clear, spoken updates about critical information, such as Amber Alerts or sightings of wanted vehicles, improving response time and comprehension. Additionally, the partnership enables hands-free operation of in-car Mobile Data Terminals (MDTs), which are crucial for accessing databases, incident reports, and dispatch details. Initially focused on police vehicles, this technology is designed to expand to other emergency vehicles as well, like fire trucks and ambulances, enhancing safety and efficiency across all first responders.

USING AI TO ANALYZE POLICE ENCOUNTERS

The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) has been involved in a partnership with researchers from the University of Southern California (USC) and others to analyze body camera footage using AI. The goal? To better understand how officers’ language affects interactions with the public. This three-year study launched in late 2023 and is focusing on thousands of encounters at traffic stops to identify what constitutes appropriate communication. According to USC, the research is led by a multidisciplinary team, including scholars from psychology, sociology, engineering, computer science, public health, and public policy.

The process for collecting and analyzing the data is as follows:

1. Review body camera footage from roughly 1,000 traffic stops.

2. Develop measurements of interactions between officers and the public based on department policy as well as feedback from community members and police officers.

3. Feed these measures into a machine-learning tool that will autonomously analyze thousands of additional videos.

The hope is that these findings will help improve officer training and promote accountability in police interactions. LAPD officials hope this study can lead to more respectful, de-escalated interactions with the public not just in LA but beyond.

THE FUTURE OF ROBOCOPS

Today, we looked at just a few ways that AI is being used to enhance the police force. There are efforts happening all across the globe to make the streets safer and to aid police officers in their efforts.

Will the deployment of these AI systems be effective, or will they backfire in unexpected ways? Only time will tell. Nonetheless, next time you see those blue and red headlights flashing in your rearview mirror, AI may be responsible.