The London police will accelerate the use of drones, facial recognition, and artificial intelligence to combat crime.

Mark Rowley, the head of the Metropolitan Police in London, announced on Wednesday a strategy to accelerate the use of drones, facial recognition, and artificial intelligence to combat crime.

This initiative aims to maintain an advantage over criminals, in a context where advanced technologies are already being used by the private sector. From October 2025, the police will use new drones to respond quickly to incidents, reducing the response time to under two minutes.

Additionally, the use of facial recognition will be expanded, especially in tourist areas, contributing to the arrest of over 2,000 suspects of serious crimes. The police will collaborate with Palantir to analyze data from approximately one million surveillance cameras in London.

However, these measures have sparked criticism from civil rights organizations, which warn about the risks of excessive surveillance and identification errors. Recently, the High Court in London ruled that the police had implemented sufficient protective measures to prevent abuses.