The New York Police Department is bringing a new type of robot cop to city streets. K5, a stout “outdoor security robot” on wheels, is about to kick off a two-month stint in the Times Square subway station, where it’ll help human officers conduct surveillance and take reports.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced the robot’s debut Friday at a press conference and on social media. “We must use every available method to keep New Yorkers safe — including state-of-the-art technologies like the Knightscope K5 security robot,” he posted on X. “These devices will serve as an important, innovative deterrent to crime so we can keep NYC the safest big city in America.”
Made by Knightscope, a California-based security camera and robotics company, K5 is designed to patrol places like malls, casinos, airports, and even hospitals. The weatherproof, bullet-shaped robot wheels around at three miles per hour for a maximum of three hours before recharging (an autonomous docking process that takes roughly half an hour). At just over five feet tall and three feet wide, K5 has a relatively commanding presence, while its nearly 400 pounds of bulk prevents aspiring vandals from being able to topple it over. K5’s four wide-angle HD cameras, five lidar sensors, and seven sonar sensors allow it to navigate busy areas, while a 16-microphone array and amplified speaker facilitate audio communication with the public.
Adams said K5 will patrol subway stations between midnight and 6 a.m., beginning with a two-month test assignment at the Times Square-42nd Street station. K5 will spend its patrol shift recording video that a human can review retroactively if a crime is reported. Civilians can also push a button on K5 to connect with a human NYPD employee and ask questions or report incidents.
The introduction of a new police robot to NYC streets has some people concerned about their dwindling privacy. In March, Adams—a former NYPD captain—re-introduced robot dogs to patrol. The NYPD had previously attempted to bring “Spot,” a pricey Boston Dynamics quadruped, onto the force two years prior, but civilian outrage forced it to reconsider. Now, the agency is hoping it’ll get a better reaction. The NYPD also used drones to monitor citizens’ Labor Day and J’Ouvert celebrations this month. This move is thought to have been inspired by Adams’ recent trip to Israel, where police agencies use drones to surveil the public.
Given the NYPD’s history of using controversial technology to snoop on civilians, journalists have been peppering the agency with questions regarding K5’s ability to leverage artificial intelligence. Adams told presser attendees on Friday that K5 will not be able to use AI; however, when explicitly asked about facial recognition software, an NYPD spokesperson simply directed Vice’s Motherboard to its general facial recognition policy. The policy covers body and mounted security cameras but does not mention robots.
