Baltimore police to get upgraded body-worn cameras, Tasers after city approves $153 million contract
Baltimore police may be getting new body-worn cameras and Tasers after the city Board of Estimates approved a $153 million, 10-year contract with Axon Enterprise.
City leaders said the company's software is compatible with the department's current equipment. Baltimore City Council President Zeke Cohen abstained from voting on the measure.
New police technology
The Tasers will be used as replacements for ones that have been worn out, Baltimore Police spokesperson Lidney Eldridge told our partners at the Baltimore Banner.
The body cameras will have new artificial intelligence (AI) features that will "assist officers, detectives and supervisors and reviewers in translation, transcription, summarization and searching" through the video footage, Eldridge said.
The contract with Axon features a two-year provisional period for officers to test the AI functions and decide if they want to buy. During that time, Eldridge said the department and city will outline standard procedures for using AI and will test the technology before it is used across the department.
AI in police tech
Several other major cities in the U.S. have also started using AI technology in recent years.
A police station in Detroit recently invested in similar body-cam upgrades that feature language translation, with agency leaders saying, "It's really going to increase our level of service and improve safety."
In 2019, Axon created an AI ethics board to advise the company on the development of its AI products and services.
Since then, the company has rolled out several AI-enhanced technologies and systems, including an expanded Axon Assistant, which provides officers with access to police data through its app. The company also introduced Axon Vision, which they said uses AI to "recognize critical activity in live video."
According to Axon, more than 210 million 911 calls are made every year in the U.S., with cameras generating millions of hours of footage. The company says its new technologies will help speed up response times by enhancing workflows for police.
