US to study feasibility of an AI police officer

The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in the United States has launched a study into the use of artificial intelligence to create a ‘digital policeman’ D-PO.

According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the lab envisages that in the future law enforcement agencies will be able to collaborate with virtual assistants to fight crime.

For example, D-PO could connect to a facial recognition system and alert a patrol officer to a nearby suspect. Or the assistant could advise the officer on the best way to apprehend the alleged violator.

The EFF warned against collaboration with such software, citing concerns about inaccurate facial-recognition matches and biased forecasting policies.

“In emails we received, one of the authors acknowledges that elements such as D-PO and monitoring of live drone feeds are ‘impossible in the near term’,” the EFF said.

The lab also described how a separate virtual assistant, BITS, could provide visual data to U.S. border and customs agents to combat the illegal drug trade.

“The records obtained by the EFF do not indicate any official interest from border officials or the Department of Homeland Security. However, BITS could appear before D-PO,” the statement said.

Earlier in October, robot manufacturers promised not to create devices and software for military purposes.

A group of American congressmen introduced a bill, restricting the use of facial-recognition technologies by police in the United States.

In July, scientists described the creation of an algorithm that predicts crimes a week in advance.

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