BALTIMORE, Md. — Crime-fighting robots roaming the streets? No, it's not the plot of a science fiction movie, but a real-life application of artificial intelligence, being utilized by hotels, casinos, malls, and police departments.
"Three words - deter, detect, and report," Mark Santana Li, co-founder of Knightscope, the company that manufactures these robots, told a group of about two dozen people who showed up to Northside Baptist Church in Baltimore to learn more about the technology.
You can watch the robot in action in the video above, from our 6 p.m. newscast.
Baltimore-based tech company, X9 Intelligence, distributes Knightscope's products, and wants to enlist the Baltimore Police Department as a client. The two companies made the case for the technology to the public on Friday.
“We’re not looking to replace human beings with our technologies. All of our technologies are designed to augment, to enhance their human handlers," Li told the audience. "We want to be extra eyes, ears, and voice for human beings.”
We know what you might be thinking: what's to stop someone from trying to destroy this thing? Police departments can actually deputize the robots. So attacking one, would be the same as assaulting a police officer.
"The robots have 360 degree vision. So if you walk up and think you're just gonna bang it, it's 420 lbs; for one, you're gonna be seen," Carroll said.
These bots aren't fully independent. The cameras are always monitored by humans.
"They have alerts, when they see something out of order, and then the handlers will make a decision on what the next steps are," Jonathan Carroll, head of X9 Intelligence, explained.
Carroll demonstrated how the robot works to the group of curious onlookers.
"Let’s say the K5 is at Druid Hill Park. It’s patrolling. We have a resident that is having an emergency of some sort, whether they feel threatened or they’re having a medical emergency. They can press the security call button, and this automatically connects them to an officer on the handler’s side that can talk to them and get them assistance immediately. This way they don’t feel like they’re out there by themselves,” Carroll said as he demonstrated the robot’s call button. "If someone was not capable of pressing the button, they could stand in front of the robot and wave and say ‘help, help.’ The handlers on the back-end would see that and would engage that person."
Police departments can also turn on the facial recognition feature, and program the robot with a list of wanted criminals.
"We have potential suspects out, right? The robots can be given that list, and if the robot sees someone that matches a person on that list, they’ll give an alert to the handlers. Then a human being will have to verify that match,” Carroll told the group. "Now if you want something customized, for example, if we had the robot be a security guard at the church, and after hours the pastor only wanted certain individuals to have access to the church, then the facial recognition feature could be activated for those individuals only. It’s not having facial recognition open to the public just capturing people’s faces."
The facial recognition feature, as well as listening capabilities, can also be deactivated by the individual client if they choose.
“We’re not recording any audio unless somebody presses the intercom button, is in distress. And we announce we are recording. The video, on the other hand, is constantly streaming 24/7, 365," co-founder Stacy Stephens said, speaking to the room via Zoom call. "The laws are that we cannot eavesdrop on private conversations. We cannot put the robot in places where you have an expectation of privacy. If you are out in a public place, you have no such expectation of privacy. If you're a hotel room, conference room, restroom, those are private places."
Footage is stored by Knightscope, and automatically deletes after 30 days unless law enforcement needs to save it for evidence.
Privacy was the biggest concern voiced by the Baltimore residents who came out to see the robots in action.
"I’m partially skeptical," Herbert Johnson told WMAR-2 News' Elizabeth Worthington. "I like the idea that it’s trying to create a better environment. I do have some questions about its ability to store information that maybe as a person just out on the street wouldn’t want to be passed on or even kept, for that matter."
"I think it’s amazing, and like so many other folks, we were really concerned about how intrusive it might be and a lot of folks still may have that concern. But I think that it could really do a lot in terms of helping to get the crime down," Baltimore resident Orrester Shaw told us. "Let’s face it, AI is here, intrusive or not. So we have to make sure that we’re utilizing to our advantage and cutting crime is certainly a priority, or it should be."
The cost depends on the client. It's typically $10-12 an hour for an annual contract. A short-term contract - for a one-day event, for example, would be slightly more expensive.
Carroll says X9 Intelligence has been in contact with BPD, but couldn't comment on whether or not there's been interest from the department. A spokesperson from BPD was also unable to confirm whether they're exploring the possibility.
The technology has been deployed in other cities, with mixed results.
In Las Vegas, a crime-ridden apartment complex started using one of Knightscope's "crime-fighting robots" in 2021, and saw a drop in 911 calls.
In New York City, however, the NYPD did a trial run in the Times Square subway station, and paid for a 6-month contract. But the robot was taken out of service and put in a storage facility after just two months. A reason wasn't provided, but the technology had been facing criticism.