NYPD pulls the plug on its Times Square subway police robot just months after Mayor Eric Adams touted the $12,500 machine as ‘part of the fabric’ of the future
The NYPD security robot has been removed from the Times Square subway station, just months after Eric Adams described it as “part of the fabric” of the future.
The New York Police Department has unveiled its fleet of ‘Big Brother’ robocops that would patrol the city’s streets and subways in April.
In September, Mayor Eric Adams announced that another robot would be joining the department — a nearly 400-pound robot that would roam the Times Square-42nd Street subway station and patrol the station’s mezzanine.
The AI-powered security robots will no longer be deployed on New York City’s public transportation, officials confirmed Sunday.
The end of robot security in the Big Apple’s busiest subway station comes after Adams mentioned the technical part of the system’s future.
The NYPD security robot has been removed from its post at the Times Square subway station, just months after Eric Adams described it as ‘part of the fabric’ of the future
In September, Mayor Eric Adams announced that a robot would be joining the department — a nearly 400-pound robot that would roam the Times Square-42nd Street subway station and patrol the station’s mezzanine.
The AI-powered security robots will no longer be deployed on New York City’s public transportation, officials confirmed Sunday
Adams pledged to bring more technology to the nation’s largest police department as part of his pledge to focus on fighting crime in the city.
Crime has risen in nearly every category in New York City in recent years, statistics show, despite Adams repeatedly claiming his campaign to fix the problem was successful.
“This is below minimum wage,” Adams said as he introduced the robot. ‘No toilet breaks. No meal breaks. This is a good investment.’
NYPD leased the “fully autonomous” robot for $12,500 for six months and paid for it with forfeited money, officials said last year.
The K5 device, decorated with NYPD colors and complete with an unblinking camera lens, was part of this strategy.
The robot, a product of California-based autonomous security robot developer Knightscope, has four cameras that allow it to record video and moves at a speed of 3 miles per hour.
The robot can capture video footage but not audio, and features a button that allows members of the public to contact a member of the police force to report an emergency or ask questions
“It’s very important that the public knows what this robot is and what its capabilities are,” NYPD Chief Michael Kemper said when the device was unveiled in September.
The robot can capture video footage, but not audio, and features a button that allows citizens to contact a member of the police force to report an emergency or ask questions.
In 2015, the security robot knocked a 16-month-old child to the ground in a California mall and ran over one of his feet.
Knightscope, the company that produces the machine, said the robot was trying to swerve to the left to avoid the child when the accident happened.
In another incident, the K5 model fatally rolled itself into a fountain in Washington, DC
The public is happy to see the back of the robot now that the K5’s stint at the Times Square station is over, at least for now.
Nick Linnear, who has worked as an MTA employee for the past five years, said The New York Post that he thought the robots didn’t work.
Adams pledged to bring more technology to the nation’s largest police department as part of his pledge to focus on crime in the city
The end of robot security at the Big Apple’s busiest subway station comes after Adams described the new AI technology as ‘part of the fabric of our subway system’
The K5 device, decorated with NYPD colors and complete with a no-flash camera lens, was part of this strategy
“I don’t think it’s a good idea,” he told The Post. But Linnear had not seen the robots at work himself. “We need police, not robots,” he said.
Joseph Williams, a Harlem resident since 1994, said, “It’s bulls–t. It’s straight bullshit,” he said. “It’s a waste of taxpayer money.”
Eric Adams has yet to say whether the pilot program was considered a success.
DailyMail.com reached out to the mayor’s office to inquire about the robot’s stint and future plans for robot/AI security technology.