Understanding public attitudes towards the use of AI in policing

Project Summary

Debate around AI has become more prominent and more polarised in recent years, and yet the technology and its implications remain little understood by the wider public (Ada Lovelace Institute and Alan Turing Institute, 2023). At the same time, services are finding increasing uses for fast-developing AI technologies in their work.

The Home Office is embarking on a public dialogue to understand public perceptions and attitudes towards the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in policing. AI has great potential for improving policing’s ability to prevent, detect and investigate crime, but concerns include the use of personal data, the potential for automated decision making, and bias from unrepresentative data used in algorithms. Meanwhile, the views from those most affected and the wider public are little understood. In line with the principle of policing by consent, any policy changes and investments in this area must command the support of the public if they are to succeed.

The project aims to address an evidence gap in understanding levels of public confidence in the use of AI tools in policing beyond facial recognition – current evidence of public attitudes focuses on facial recognition over other use cases. The dialogue will empower around 60 members of the public to come together to learn about and discuss some of the key issues surrounding the use of AI in policing. They will explore a range of scenarios and recommend how the police service should use AI tools in a way that is as effective, fair and safe as possible . The workshops will take place in early 2025, in multiple locations across England and Wales. The priorities for the discussion during the workshops will be informed by a public attitudes survey which will run in late 2024.

Findings from the dialogue will inform central government policy regarding police use of AI technologies and support Chief Constables and Police and Crime Commissioners to make informed decisions about their use of AI tools.

The public dialogue will be overseen by the Home Office in partnership with UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI’s) Sciencewise Programme. The project will be delivered by Thinks and evaluated by Sophie Reid.