The Chicago Transit Authority is initiating tests on a technology that uses artificial intelligence to detect firearms within its "L" stations, The Chicago Tribune reports. ZeroEyes' technology automatically identifies brandished guns. The images are forwarded to a ZeroEyes operations center, where staff members review them to confirm the object's identity before notifying the appropriate authorities, including police, CTA officials, and Chicago's Office of Emergency Management and Communications. The goal, CTA officials said, is to alert police quickly to any situation arising at the transit agency’s stations. The test program comes as the CTA has grappled with concerns about personal safety, both real and perceived, in recent years, and as the use of different types of technology to address public safety concerns has grown. The department said 626 instances of violent crime had been reported on the CTA this year through Aug. 27, up from 547 through the same period last year.
The $200,000 ZeroEyes test run, which has been in place for about a month, will run through summer 2025 to start, CTA Vice President of Security Kevin Ryan said. The program uses the CTA’s existing cameras to detect guns once they have been exposed. It is now installed on more than 250 of the agency’s roughly 30,000 cameras, he said. Ryan expects the program to expand if the test goes well, based on the technology's effectiveness, law enforcement's response time, and its ability to deter potential gun carriers. So far, the program has detected guns carried openly by law enforcement officers and toy guns, including large electronic water guns, he said. ZeroEyes alerted Chicago and CTA officials to the toy guns, noting they were not believed to be lethal weapons, and then it was up to local officials to determine how to respond, Ryan said. “One of the reasons I really like ZeroEyes is it has a human component to it,” he said. “It’s not relying on AI or computers to completely do the work.” A separate gunshot detection technology used in Chicago, ShotSpotter, became a political flashpoint earlier this year. Supporters have said the technology — which uses audio sensors to determine the location of potential outdoor gunfire, while ZeroEyes relies on images — helps police arrive quicker at crime scenes and helps critical aid reach gunshot victims more quickly. Opponents, including Mayor Brandon Johnson, labeled it a costly impetus for overpolicing, and the mayor has nodded to studies questioning its effectiveness as a tool to curb crime and catch criminals.
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