Artificial intelligence is ubiquitous in 2024. It is being used for everything from making a medical diagnosis to writing news articles that readers believe came from the mind and research of a living human being.

And in New York City, it is scanning hundreds of public transportation riders to search for hidden weapons. This pilot program was rolled out recently to keep firearms off the subways, where there have been several high-profile incidents in recent years.

The results? Over 100 false alerts and not a single weapon intercepted.

Civil libertarians warn of the dubious legal basis for such massive scans of the general population. They worry that this technology is ripe for abuse and presents a new and potentially invasive threat to law-abiding citizens.

But, under the watchful eye of a notoriously anti-gun city and state, the New York Police Department rolled out the testing initiative. They used technology developed by Evolv to attempt to intercept firearms being carried onto the city’s sprawling subway system.

The initial returns for those looking to interdict weapons are not promising. NYPD statistics show 118 false positives and not a single weapon prevented from entering public transit.

Mayor Eric Adams (D) promoted the pilot program as part of a city-wide push to do “something” about public safety concerns, particularly in the crowded subway tunnels.

The initial test targeted 20 subway stations over a 30-day period. NYPD officers scanned 2,749 subway riders for threats, and dozens were pulled out of the line after a false detection.

Some 12 knives were detected, though it is unclear whether the blades were of the pocketknife variety permissible on the system or an illegal type. 

Details of the month-long experiment were not released. For example, it is unclear how long it took to scan thousands of riders, the manpower requirements to implement the system, and the reactions of inconvenienced travelers.

But Adams, who describes himself as a tech enthusiast, continues to tout the AI devices. They are already in place at one NYC hospital and are set to be rolled out in public schools.

While city officials were tight-lipped over the results, critics quickly pounced on the failure to find a single weapon and the scores of false positives. The Legal Aid Society released a statement blasting the pilot program as “objectively a failure, no matter how hard City Hall tries to spin this data.”

The organization added, “Given this failed pilot, all the other overwhelming evidence against using Evolv’s weapons detectors and the surrounding controversies, including lawsuits and various investigations, we hope this ill-conceived, fraught and unwanted idea is finally shelved for good.”

Evolv is also the target of legal actions, including a class action lawsuit filed earlier this year by investors. The plaintiffs charge that the company exaggerated its AI system’s capabilities and that the technology “does not reliably detect knives or guns.”

The mayor himself is under federal investigations, which include multiple recent subpoenas, raids and seizures of devices held by members of his first-term administration.

Remember, the New York subway system transports millions of riders. The pilot results clearly show that such an unwieldy and inefficient system is a hardship on schedules for public transit and its numerous riders.

New Yorkers and millions of annual visitors enter the tunnels through hundreds of different points. Is the city seriously prepared to institute this AI scanning program at each and every one?

If not, there will be gaping holes through which any rider who cares to check will know they will not be flagged by the AI system. 

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