# Police using AI risks making discrimination worse, researchers warn

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/police-using-ai-risks-making-discrimination-worse-researchers-warn/
- Published: 2026-10-25T12:18:56+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-25T13:24:14+00:00
- Original publisher: BBC Science (publisher lean: Centre)
- Original article: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckpdg4pl7pgvo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss
- Topics: AI, Research, Science, Technology

## Key points

- Biased police data can skew AI crime predictions.
- More patrols may mean more recorded crime in targeted areas.
- Researchers call for scrutiny and human oversight.

## Summary

Researchers warn that AI tools used to predict crime hotspots can amplify discrimination if they rely on police records shaped by existing bias. Greater scrutiny and human oversight could help prevent automated predictions from reinforcing patterns that affect minority communities.

The concern is that areas receiving more police patrols may produce more recorded crime, then appear even riskier in later predictions. Sociologist Sarah Brayne’s study of the Los Angeles Police Department found that its data was skewed towards crimes visible in public and policing focused disproportionately on black neighbourhoods. AI researcher Dimitrios Kollias says newer systems can account for historical bias, but adds that increasingly autonomous tools still need meaningful human control.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.