Chicago's transit authority looks to AI-powered gun detection to help curb violent crime

As part of a continuing effort to curb violent crime and enhance security for riders, the Chicago Transit Authority announced Aug. 29 it would begin utilizing an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered gun detection technology in some of its existing digital security cameras.

The technology, provided by Conshohocken, Pa.-based ZeroEyes, works by identifying brandished guns and notifying ZeroEyes operation centers, where human analysts determine whether an AI-detected threat is accurate before alerting local law enforcement. Notifications to local security occur in “often under one minute” after detection and provide the gun type, specific location and a photograph of the suspected gunman, according to the CTA.

The product has been in use at Chicago’s Navy Pier for two years and is costing the CTA $200,000 to implement for a 12-month trial. The program does not include facial recognition technology, according to the CTA.

“Our hope is this added measure of protection provides additional peace of mind to everyone,” CTA President Dorval R. Carter Jr. said in a statement announcing the program.

But any peace of mind instilled by the project was shaken four days later on Sept. 2, when four people were shot dead on the city’s “L” train in a tragedy that made national headlines. The new AI technology was not installed in the train car cameras where the quadruple homicide took place, according to Block Club Chicago, but the incident sparked renewed interest and scrutiny of CTA’s security measures as well as the new AI technology.

While Carter noted Aug. 29 that crime on the city’s mass transit system is “comparatively rare,” an analysis by the Chicago Tribune following the Sept. 2 shooting found that despite an increased CTA security budget in recent years, gun crimes on the transit system have yet to return to pre-pandemic levels. As of late August, 39 gun-related crimes have been reported on CTA trains—more than any year in the past decade except 2022, when recorded gun crimes soared to 60, according to the Tribune.

Despite the challenges, the quality of the CTA’s surveillance systems was praised by officials in the aftermath of the Sept. 2 shooting for helping to locate the gunman involved and bring him into custody within hour and a half of the incident.

“Surveillance video is vital in a lot of our investigations, especially this one,” Forest Park Deputy Chief Chris Chin said in a news conference. “They have excellent camera systems on the train.”

Dan O’Shea, a retired Chicago police official who now heads security at Navy Pier, has championed use of the ZeroEyes software for gun detection. O’Shea’s office has received 45 alerts of possible guns in 2024 so far, according to CBS Chicago. Although none of the alerts have resulted in security issues, they tell O’Shea that the technology is active and working.

“This has the ability to possibly save many lives in an active shooter situation,” O’Shea told CBS. “You know, the camera is looking for a weapon—it’s not looking for a person. So anytime a weapon is displayed, the police need to know about it—and I think it’s a great investment.”

ZeroEyes was founded in 2018 by a team of Navy SEALs and technologists, according to its website. Its cameras are monitored 24/7. Along with public operations like the CTA, the company says its technology is also used in schools and for nonprofits.