According to VentureBeat, Silicon Valley startup Deep North is looking to implement artificial intelligence solutions into school systems to keep faculty, staff, and students safe. Last month, the company announced that it is going to field-test its threat-detecting object recognition and computer vision technology in a select number of institutions.
Deep North’s technology “applies an intelligent layer to conventional, off-the-shelf security cameras.” It then analyzes footage as it rolls in, and “monitors, detects, and interprets people’s in-frame behavior and movement across settings and identifies objects e.g., unattended bags or objects that look like a weapon — that might pose a danger to students and staff,” VentureBeat says. If a threat is detected, school administrators receive a warning.
The solution is expected to be most handy in areas that typically experience crowds, such as entrances and gathering areas. VentureBeat also says that the technology can “prevent abductions,” improve layouts and infrastructure, and manage foot traffic.
While this particular solution is new to the physical security scene, there are already similar technologies out there serving different purposes, such as China’s “intelligent classroom behavior management system,” which uses facial recognition tools to analyze students’ engagement in real time.
What decision makers should keep in mind:
While it seems that schools and other industries are gravitating towards AI solutions for security and other measurement methods, VentureBeat says that these systems have a couple of overlooked downsides. For example, there’s “little to no public data to assess whether AI-driven surveillance system in schools work.” Plus, facial recognition AI is prone to “bias and false positives,” such as in the case where the AI system deployed by London’s Metropolitan Police produced as many as 49 false matches for every hit, VentureBeat says.
However, Deep North president and CEO Michael Adair said that the company’s goal with this AI technology is to do good, and keep people safe.
“We look forward to expanding our efforts with this program and helping more schools across the country enhance security, mitigate safety risks, and better protect their students and faculty for the long run,” he told VentureBeat.
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