Hammersmith and Fulham Council's new CCTV system, enhanced with Artificial Intelligence (AI), is designed to be less prone to bias, according to a report presented to the Community Safety Board.
The council is investing £3.2 million in advanced CCTV technologies, including AI modules for knife detection and aggressive behaviour recognition. Justin Hunt, Interim Assistant Director of Community Safety, explained that while facial recognition technology is still under exploration, the AI systems for knife and aggressive behaviour detection are considered less susceptible to bias than facial recognition.
Councillor David Campbell had raised concerns about the potential for AI to discriminate, prompting Mr. Hunt's clarification. The AI enhancement programme is part of a wider £3.2 million investment in CCTV technologies, which also includes multi-sensor cameras and integrated speaker and lighting systems.
The council operates one of the largest CCTV networks in the UK, with approximately 2,300 cameras across the borough. The AI modules are expected to go live in the coming weeks, aiming to improve proactive incident detection by alerting operatives to specific events.
