Thailand Deploys Humanoid Robot Dressed in Police Uniform
Unperturbed by the dystopian optics, the Royal Thai Police have deployed a humanoid police robot during a festival.
As the Straits Times reports, the unsettling robot, dubbed "AI police cyborg 1.0" — even though it's technically more of an android and not a cyborg — surveyed the streets during the country's Songkran festival using 360-degree cameras.
According to the report, the cyborg is equipped with facial recognition technology and can notify officers of high-risk individuals and weapons.
But is this really an invention worthy of the nickname "Robocop?"
It's difficult to judge how effective the Thai police force's latest recruit actually is. Sure, machine learning-assisted video surveillance has been around for years. But what about doing more human stuff, like walking?
We have to see the Thai police's police cyborg actually move. Images shared by the Royal Thai Police on Facebook show it standing stiff on a raised, metal platform with wheels, suggesting it may not be able to walk on its own accord.
Put simply, what can it do that a tripod with a 360-degree camera and a mobile computer can't? Why bother with an entire bipedal dummy? Wouldn't a swarm of drones prove far more effective when it comes to reconnaissance and identifying bad guys?
Besides, if it weren't being guarded by a surprising number of human recruits, what would stop a masked vigilante from simply tipping it over?
We've already seen plenty of disastrous rollouts of robots in law enforcement. For instance, police forces across the United States have already deployed security robots developed by California-based security company Knightscope.
In New York, the company's portly robot was taken out of commission almost immediately, proving unable to stop crime in any meaningful way before it ended up collecting dust in an empty storefront.
There have also been reports of robots running over a toddler, as well as being thwarted by mall fountains and narrow sidewalks.
Last year, we also came across a rolling robot, reminiscent of the android BB-8 in the "Star Wars" universe, being deployed by a police force in Eastern China.
Even if the Royal Thai Police were to be accessing the very cutting edge in humanoid robotics, plenty of technical obstacles could still make deploying a "police cyborg" an expensive and ultimately fruitless endeavor.
As of right now, humanoid robots are only starting to learn how to be comfortable on their own two feet, so their deployment would likely demand ample human supervision.
Whether the Royal Thai Police has considered the substantial privacy implications of rolling out facial recognition-powered surveillance tech remains unclear. Law enforcement in the country has been accused of corruption and bribery, so civil liberties probably aren't exactly priority number one.
More on robot cops: Chinese Police Deploy Rolling BB-8-Style Robot to Patrol Streets, Chase Down Suspects
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