Dubai’s first Robocop starts active duty

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By Matthew Griffin Robo Revolution 26th May 2017

WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF

It is inevitable that robots will take a more dominant role in our society and by rolling out the world’s first robot police force Dubai has taken the first big step.

Almost two years after their initial announcement the world’s first robot policeman has officially joined Dubai’s police force. While it’s not exactly the Robocop from the movies the officers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) might want to get used to them because, if everything goes according to plan, they may soon account for a quarter of police force.

The autonomous Robocop, which I’ve been tracking for a while now, and which I spoke about at my recent keynote in Dubai, came on active duty earlier this week by greeting guests and patrolling the halls at the three day Gulf Information Security Expo and Conference (GISEC), and then it was moved to take up residence in the Mall of Dubai, the world’s largest mall on Tuesday

“With an aim to assist and help people in the malls or on the streets, the Robocop is the latest smart addition to the force and has been designed to help us fight crime, keep the city safe and improve happiness levels,” said Brigadier-General Khalid Nasser Al Razzouqi, Director-General of Smart Services with the Dubai Police, “he can chat and interact, respond to public queries, shake hands and offer a military salute,” he added.

Standing at a height of 5 feet, 5 inches (1.7 meters) and weighing in at 220lbs (100kg), the Robocop can read a person’s facial expressions and react accordingly in six languages. It can also transmit and receive messages from police, and has a built-in tablet that can be used to pay fines and report crimes. But, if you think that that’s all there is to the rather comical mall addition then you’ll have to think again – it’s also been equipped with the latest machine vision technology which allows it to identify criminals on sight, and, with new “pre-crime” technologies starting to appear on the market it might not be too long before it begins apprehending people before they even commit crimes…

“The launch of the world’s first operational Robocop is a significant milestone for the Emirate and a step towards realizing Dubai’s vision to be a global leader in smart cities technology adoption,” said Brigadier-General Razzouqi.

The models, which were first unveiled at the Gulf Information Technology Exhibition (GITEX) in 2015, are a central part of Dubai’s plan to create the city of the future and which has already seen it make investments in a new 3D printed skyscrapers, Hyperloop networks, flying taxis and autonomous transport, and, again, if everything goes according to plan, which it normally does in Dubai the Emirate will also be the first country to introduce new police stations that are entirely manned by robots.

Matthew Griffin / About Author

Matthew Griffin, described as a "Walking encyclopaedia of the future" by NASA and a futurist polymath, is one of the world's most renowned futurists and strategic foresight experts. A serial entrepreneur Matthew is the Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working across the next 50 years, XPotential University, the world's first free futures and foresight university, and the World Futures Forum which works with the United Nations to solve the worlds greatest challenges. 13 times author of the Codex of the Future series, Matthew is an in demand international keynote, acclaimed university lecturer, and host of the hit Fanatical Futurist podcast.

A rare talent in his past Matthew helped build and run several multi-billion dollar business units for Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, and his ability to identify, track, and explain the impacts of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends on global business, culture, and society has earned him a powerful reputation and a roster of clients that include royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77+ governments, and many of the world's most respected brands including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi Group, Coca Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Disney, EY, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Pepsi Co, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, and many others. He was also the only futurist invited to talk at the UN COP28 held in Dubai alongside world leaders.

Regularly featured in the global media including the AP, BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, Discovery, Forbes, Khaleej Times, Telegraph, TIME, ViacomCBS, WIRED, and the WSJ, Matthews mission is to help organisations create a fair and sustainable future whose benefits are shared by everyone irrespective of their ability, background, or circumstances.