Singapore is testing the use of patrol robots as the new addition to its mass surveillance infrastructure and the pair of machines, named "Xavier," will have the task of making sure the country's residents behave themselves in public spaces.
Singapore's Home Team Science and Technology Agency announced a 3 week trial of the technology before it is handed over to the local police. The intent is to use the robots as supplementary workforce to help out Singapore's public officers. The
"Xaviers" are fitted with cameras and networked with a command and control center, and report back on people's "bad behavior" in real time. And what qualifies for bad social behavior in Singapore right now is falling afoul of
COVID restrictions, but also things like parking your bike where you're not supposed to, or smoking in public areas. There is also a re-educational element, as the robots will show messages instructing humans on what the expected,
"proper" social behavior should be. |