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CBC
12-07-2025
- Business
- CBC
Winnipeg police expand AI agent pilot program for non-emergency line
More Winnipeg residents will have their non-emergency calls answered by artificial intelligence as the police service expands its AI-powered voice agent pilot program next week. Winnipeg Police Service said in a Friday news release that it has been testing the system for nearly a year, with the hopes that the AI agent will replace the existing automated voice system that guides callers through a pre-recorded list of options. Police said the non-emergency line has received about 900 calls per day, with about 172,000 calls logged so far this year. Insp. Gord Spado says the new AI system is intended to be more conversational and user-friendly compared to the "cumbersome" voice system Winnipeg police currently use. "Our goal of this project is really about improving customer service and giving a modern flair to the call-taking process with our organization," Spado said at a news conference on Friday. He said the police will begin ramping up daily testing next week, starting with two hours per day. If all goes well, the AI agent will soon be triaging calls for six to seven hours per day. Eventually, the service will operate 24 hours a day, Spado said. "We really want to get it to the point where a person can call, say what they need and not worry about where they are in that list of options, and the AI agent can forward them to the most appropriate resource," he said. The non-emergency line agent is one of six AI-centred pilot projects the city announced last June. Other pilots include an automated chat agent for 311 inquiries and automated invoice processing. Mayor Scott Gillingham said the police service's AI agent is "exactly the kind of innovation that [he] hoped for" when he pushed city staff to consider how AI could be used across municipal services. "This is about delivering good customer service to the people of Winnipeg and making a heavy workload a little more manageable for our frontline staff," Gillingham said during the press conference announcing the pilot's expanded scope. He said the city is taking a "careful" and "measured" approach to AI integration by slowly expanding the pilot. Brandon University sociology professor Chris Schneider, who specializes in the social impact of new media, said he's "cautiously optimistic" about Winnipeg police using AI, emphasizing the caution. Vancouver police use a similar AI-powered tool for calls, which was developed by an American company called Genesys. Schneider said relying on large international companies raises concerns around data privacy and public safety. "Can they assure the public that there will be no manipulation, or that it's perfectly safe and cannot be manipulated by outside actors?" he said in an interview with Up to Speed 's Chloe Friesen on Friday afternoon. "There's a lot of questions here and very few answers, unfortunately." He said the AI agent will likely help callers get service faster, making them less likely to hang up before they get the help they need. However, the automated experience could become frustrating without a human on the other end of the line, Schneider said. According to Winnipeg police's website, residents should use the non-emergency line to report crimes where the suspect has left the scene, property crimes that are no longer in progress, and suspicious circumstances. In Friday's news release, police encouraged callers to speak in clear, full, sentences, while limiting background noise and being patient while the AI agent finishes its prompts. Schneider said calm, clear communication may be difficult if a caller has recently witnessed or been the victim of a crime, even if it's not an emergency. "This is one of the basic problems with the incorporation of AI, is AI does not have any kind of empathy. I think empathy goes a long way in talking people through situations where they might be upset because something terrible has happened to them, their family or their property," he said. Spado said the police service hopes to decide whether the AI agent will become permanent by the end of the year. He said it is only available in English, but they are working to expand the tool to French-speaking residents soon.
Winnipeg Free Press
11-07-2025
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
WPS ramps up AI non-emergency call response system
Non-emergency phone calls to Winnipeg police are soon more likely to be answered by an artificial intelligence voice agent. A pilot project testing the new technology began nearly a year ago, but initially answered calls just a few hours per week. Beginning Monday, that will increase to a few hours per day. Insp. Gord Spado said WPS hopes to ramp up the AI service again in a couple of weeks and, if it continues to work well, eventually offer it 24 hours a day to help address high call volumes and reduce wait times. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Inspector Gord Spado of the WPS communications division, with guest Mayor Scott Gillingham), speaks to the media about AI-powered interactive voice agents for their non-emergency line on Friday. 'Our non-emergency line received about 172,000 calls to date this year. That's about 900 a day. That doesn't include the 911 calls that we receive,' said Spado. 'We really want to try to divert as many non-emergency calls as we can while still providing a quality customer service. And that frees up our call-takers to handle the actual emergent calls.' Spado urged those callers to speak in clear, full sentences, limit background conversations and wait for AI prompts to be completed before replying to help the system provide fast, accurate results. WPS had previously said the pilot project was initially expected to be fully implemented by June. However, it was delayed after initial tests yielded disappointing results, including missed words and slow responsiveness, which led many calls to be forwarded to human call-takers. At the time, police said a more recent test had produced much better results, with 58 of 60 calls handled entirely by AI. Police have noted the AI system will not take 911 calls, which will continue to be directed to a human operator. The system is expected to help reduce staff workload but not the number of staff taking police calls, said Spado. 'We've got so much demand for staff right now, we're actually recruiting more. There's no intention to reduce staffing right now.' The AI system would replace WPS's current voice-response program for non-emergency calls, which prompts callers to press buttons to help direct their inquiries. The new automated, more conversational system will be able to ask and respond to questions instead. The project is one of six AI-driven pilot projects the City of Winnipeg started in 2024. Weekday Mornings A quick glance at the news for the upcoming day. 'This is about delivering good customer service to the people of Winnipeg and making a heavy workload a little more manageable for front-line staff,' said Mayor Scott Gillingham. The system is currently limited to English, but it is possible to expand to other languages, said Spado. Police hope to decide if the pilot project will become permanent by the end of this year. X: @joyanne_pursaga Joyanne PursagaReporter Joyanne is city hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. A reporter since 2004, she began covering politics exclusively in 2012, writing on city hall and the Manitoba Legislature for the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in early 2020. Read more about Joyanne. Every piece of reporting Joyanne produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Global News
11-07-2025
- Business
- Global News
Winnipeg cops to test AI-powered voice agent for non-emergency line
Winnipeg police are set to begin testing an AI-powered interactive voice agent for their non-emergency line. Insp. Gord Spado of the communications division will speak to media on Friday afternoon from Winnipeg police headquarters, alongside Mayor Scott Gillingham. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Global News will stream the press conference live on this page at 12:30 p.m.
