Artificial Intelligence for Security & Safety
I had James Corbett on the podcast recently to talk about his product, Impact Intel, and the vital service it provides to law enforcement for communication. IMPaCT Intel is an artificial intelligence (AI) tool that enables highly secure two-way communication. It’s an AI-powered Chat platform that can help mitigate crime and provide situation awareness when it matters most.
It provides security personnel, first responders, and those who need to know–the ability to share real-time information. Or, it can enable law enforcement to connect across a continent, which provides insight into criminal behavior actionable at the street level. It’s easy and convenient, and it daily networks those charged with mitigating risk in our public spaces.
So, I wanted to give James the ability to provide you with a more in-depth look at the tool. To do that, I asked him to answer a few questions that were top of mind after we talked. And I thought you would be interested in learning more about this emerging technology. AI platforms like ChatGBT and Jasper are in the headlines today. But, like me, you might wonder how AI applies to risk mitigation and keeping people safe.
Inquiring Minds Want to Know More
Artificial intelligence has its champions and detractors. What inspired you to choose this platform for what boils down to a communication platform?
At the core of all police work, and the root of many problems, is communication. Effective communication takes time to achieve. Paperwork and the collection of the information for said paperwork can take away from real police work that needs to get done. For nearly a decade, I have dove into the depths of understanding police and their needs. I started from the patrol level and worked my way up. An AI-powered chat platform like ours has an incredibly unique opportunity to help officers and leadership to click one button and get results that helps them be more productive; productivity boosts are measurable through gaining more time. Not to mention that now police forces all over the country face a recruiting crisis. This translates to smaller police forces, which means higher workloads per officer. This can also translate to increased response times to calls.
IMPaCT is being built to be simple, powerful, intuitive, and provide introductions to other officers who could potentially help close cases. Our efforts are being hyperfocused on communication because it takes up MOST of an officer’s time. AI is an assistant that can reduce workloads and increase productivity. We will provide unparalleled customer service through AI to automate processes and organize content based on users’ individual needs. Our public safety personnel are stressed as it is; we won’t add to it. That’s why we like to say, “Serve and protect; we’ll do the rest.”
How is this Different from other AI?
Chatbots like ChatGBT (“ChatGPT”) are prominent in the news, and AI like Jasper was designed to be business-friendly. What makes IMPaCT Intel alike or different from them?
Before I answer, ChatGPT, Jasper, and other programs are phenomenal. They really are. I use these services for marketing ONLY! Not IN IMPaCT itself. These programs are NOT built to work with secure information like CJIS (Criminal Justice Information Services). IMPaCT does NOT and will NOT use these programs. If a company does, a law enforcement agency or other government institutions should not leverage it. IMPaCT has built an incredibly complex system on the backend, what users do NOT see, and kept the front end very simple; the front end is what users see and interact with.
So, I have to ask – why are you confident that IMPaCT Intel is being used for “good” because many are worried that AI will span SkyNet from the Terminator movies or morph into a Minority Report-like world that predicts “pre-crime.”
Our AI is a simple tool. It will work when asked and prompted to. It is more of a virtual robot that is built for IMPaCT ONLY. In fact, our little bot has a name! Fuzz, our AI bot, will be ready to help our users create Rooms, distribute data quickly and efficiently, invite users, organize information, track and trace messages, secure messages and documents, communicate professionally, summarize entire police-led operations, and much more.
A Deeper Dive into IMPacT Intell
What are the practical applications of the tool? We discussed it in the podcast, but what makes IMPaCT unique today?
We have differentiated ourselves significantly by creating simple tools that can be used for investigations and beyond. Our patent-pending tool built into IMPaCT is called CivConX. We help connect civilians to police officers or security in an intelligent manner. CivConX is a tool for police that will revolutionize the way police work with citizens served. No citizen needs to download an app to use it. They need to scan a QR code, and we will handle the notification routing to the appropriate department. We see applications of this for schools, hotels, airports, truck stops, and more. A motivating factor behind this is to help combat sex trafficking, but there are even far-reaching implications in helping to PREVENT school shootings. A study conducted by the US Secret Service in 2021 found that 61% of the time, peers or students reported odd behavior. The next closest was family at 12%! We are developing a system that aims to increase the number of early interventions. This will be launched and live-tested by the end of June 2023.
Feedback from Users
James, what is the feedback you are getting from users today?
The feedback we are getting right now revolves around requests. For example, from our beta tests and speaking with officers, we can identify a need for investigations and execution of warrants. In many cases, there is a lot of communication happening. Many detectives and specialized units are using other communication applications to leave radios clear. But many of these applications are vulnerable. We had a request that led to us coming up with a solution that automatically summarizes entire operations for officers, creates transcripts, and more. This solution should be out by the end of the year.
How has IMPaCT Intel evolved from when you first started?
We started by connecting officers on the platform to discuss similar case information. This is still a part of the plan, but we have realized more potential for our product. We are now developing one of the most robust communication and investigation tools. We were only able to accomplish this through partnerships with law enforcement agencies.
The Future
You’re not doing this on your own. Who is supporting you in growing the company?
I have a great team of people more innovative than me surrounding me, no doubt. Arend van der Veen has his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering, and William Luong is a Drexel Computer science graduate who has worked for the federal government and a Fortune 100 company. Marc Snyderman, a government contract expert, and an attorney, has also played a vital role in ensuring we stay on track with compliance regarding rules and regulations.
Where is your most significant support been for the product? Am I assuming it’s from law enforcement offices in the field?
The most significant support started from the men and women on the ground at the patrol level. We are seeing a lot of growth in help from detectives, however. Detectives and other investigators need a tool to revolutionize how they work with each other and the community.
What’s next for you and IMPaCT Intell?
My goal is to fully integrate hardware with our software to create an investigative solution that is second to none, setting the standards for all other law enforcement and security-based communication software.
Now it’s time for a bonus round. James–What are the future applications of IMPaCT? What other aspects of safety and security could it be applied to?
A big goal for the future is to achieve fully in-use encryption. This would revolutionize cyber security forever. Specifically, we aim to create a Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE) algorithm that can be commercially used.
An Interesting New Tool for Resilience
Thank you to James for providing an insider’s view of this exciting new tool and its uses. I know I am excited to follow the development of IMPaCT. It started with a passion for helping and filling an existing gap to help law enforcement become more successful. Exploding how we can support resilience–in our communities and within our organizations deserves a closer look.
Many of us can relate to the fact that James identified a problem and closed the gap–by creating a solution. It’s a great compliment to the platform that he’s contributing to making our streets safer and our schools and hotels. IMPaCT Intel is a simple solution providing accurate results by networking with the right individuals to mitigate risk.
Please let me know in the comment section below what you think are the applications of AI for resilience. Is it something you plan to adopt? As always, if you enjoy the content Disaster Empire brings to you every week, please subscribe to the blog and podcast on the YouTube channel. I appreciate your continued support.
And, if you would like to learn more about IMPaCT Intel and schedule a demo – reach out to James and his team at: www.impactintell.org or [email protected]
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