One huge concern is whether these robots will show a racial bias and target Black and brown people — an issue rampant in policing and artificial intelligence. According to Harvard University, facial recognition used by police departments relies on mugshot databases, which are disproportionately Black and Hispanic (thanks largely to historically racist policing practices). Using robots as law enforcement surveillance only reinforces the methods used to disproportionately strip Black people — and everyone else, actually — of their rights and humanity. When we reached out to the NYPD’s press department for comment, a rep replied with a link to the above-referenced press conference. If not, we can expect Digidog, K5 and other law enforcement AI to be exactly what it sounds like — expansions of racist policing practices.

Source: Huffington Post April 27, 2023 13:52 UTC