Knightscope's Dystopian Vision for the Future of Robot Police

By Nicholas West

The move toward using robots in law enforcement, private security, and even to scare away the homeless, has been nearly 15 years in the making and is now becoming much more prevalent in everyday life.

“RoboCops” have now been launched coast to coast. We've seen robodogs deployed in New York City, as well as plans for a real-world R2-D2 to expand the AI-driven robot police force, courtesy to security robot leader Knightscope, Inc.

As ArsTechnica reported:

The egg-shaped robot has no appendages and is mostly just a ball of sensors. It has a 360-degree camera system, a thermal camera, LiDAR, sonar, GPS, 16 microphones, and speakers to play back pre-recorded or live messages. It can autonomously patrol an area, detect people, and recognize license plates and has facial recognition, though the NYPD claims facial recognition will not be used. As a wheeled robot, it can only access ADA-compliant areas via ramps.

Rising crime has led many previous critics of robot police to now consider a range of new autonomous security bots to fill in for or augment the human police presence.

The world that Knightscope has helped to build is already putting us into science fiction dystopia territory. However, it's nothing compared to their plans for the future.

At their recent innovation week from March 11-14, Knightscope made 4 video presentations that must be seen in order to understand the full vision for what they are planning.

Here is the quick design overview version:

Full presentations are embedded at the end, as well as a link to their must-see investor presentation that breaks down target markets, revenue projections and additional details and graphics about their products and services.

Here is some of what was heavily featured:

Autonomous security drones

Knightscope partnered with Draganfly, Inc. [Nasdaq: DPRO] to integrate drone technology with Knightscope’s Autonomous Security Robot technologies to form a unified autonomous offering that enhances security programs providing a seamless and comprehensive approach to safety, threat detection, and emergency response from both the ground and the air.

K10 patrol autonomous police vehicles right out of Gotham City

Autonomous law enforcement patrol vehicles will free up officers to respond to calls and conduct investigations while dramatically improving officer and public safety by taking over the boring, routine and monotonous patrol duties.

K15 Tactical and delivery unit for S.W.A.T. and police

High-risk events require more specialized tools to effectively and rapidly usher in a peaceful resolution. Imagine an autonomous delivery device for a variety of land and air based hardware along with first aid and recovery supplies during tragic events.

AI-driven deployment systems that can aggregate devices, analyze data and issue directives

A long-term strategy of deploying over a million devices of both current and future technologies requires an intelligent interface to amalgamate and decipher the data. By leveraging the power of AI for advanced autonomous operation and cooperation [between devices], a single point of interface and control will dramatically improve response times, quality of service and overall public safety.

K1 security tower for full surveillance and messaging in public spaces

The Knightscope K1 Tower is a stationary machine with the same features you’ve come to expect from the K3 and K5, but optimized for use in smaller areas or at points of ingress and egress – and, of course, it runs 24/7. Suitable for outdoor or indoor environments with remote monitoring from anywhere utilizing our state-of-the-art KSOC user interface. It is a simple installation by Knightscope and can be branded with custom graphics. It utilizes a standard 110v power outlet and transfers data through 4G & 5G LTE, WiFi, or Ethernet.

Ideally suited for: parking lots & structures, pedestrian entrances, lobbies, malls, hospitals, airports, casinos, offices, and more.

Knightscope Innovation Week Day 1

• Welcome - an overview of the week, the mission, a look back, bloopers, and lessons learned
• Market Opportunity – the problem defined, the market, and recurring revenue results
• Sales Demo – an overview of the current technology portfolio from a prospective client’s perspective
• Live Q&A

Knightscope Innovation Week Day 2

• Artificial Intelligence - A.I. implementation, opportunities for the future, and cyber security
• Machines-in-Network – a look behind-the-screen at deploying machines and supporting clients
• Manufacturing Machines – behind-the-scenes at Knightscope Headquarters in Silicon Valley
• Live Q&A

Knightscope Innovation Week Day 3

• New Product Development - preview of what’s going to be streaming out of Silicon Valley soon
• Q&A

Knightscope Innovation Week Day 4

• Future Concepts - overview of long-term strategy and unveiling of potential future products
• The Pitch – CEO and CFO walk through the investor presentation
• Q&A

Day 5

• Town Hall - “Ask Me Anything” with Knightscope’s CEO

Investor presentation download

All that remains to be seen is whether lethal force will be added to these autonomous systems. Early reports indicate that, yes, this is on the way as well.

Hat Tip: Joe Cadillac/Substack

Nicholas West writes for Activist Post and Counter Markets.

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