Author of The Blackout Book and the online course Bloom Where You’re Planted
Landing AI has created a new tool to help keep people “safe” by spying on them with a camera that measures whether or not they’re properly participating in social distancing. Because who needs privacy when there’s a deadly virus around, right?
Landing AI’s blog says:
To complement our customers’ efforts and to help ensure social distancing protocol in their workplace, Landing AI has developed an AI-enabled social distancing detection tool that can detect if people are keeping a safe distance from each other by analyzing real time video streams from the camera.
For example, at a factory that produces protective equipment, technicians could integrate this software into their security camera systems to monitor the working environment with easy calibration steps. As the demo shows below, the detector could highlight people whose distance is below the minimum acceptable distance in red, and draw a line between to emphasize this. The system will also be able to issue an alert to remind people to keep a safe distance if the protocol is violated.
As part of an ongoing effort to keep our customers and others safe, and understanding that the only way through this is with global collaboration, we wanted to share the technical methodology we used to develop this software. (source)
Watch the quick video below.
Watching life go on through the eyes of an artificial intelligence device has a certain sense of dystopia. The technology highlights “people whose distance is below the minimum acceptable distance in red, and draw a line between to emphasize this.”
What will they do to enforce it? Make people wear shock collars that will give them a little zap when they get to close to a fellow human being? Deploy a drone to give them a verbal warning? Dispatch a human being to get within six feet and threaten them with arrest, resulting in even more contact?
Landing AI doesn’t mention that. Instead, they conclude cheerfully:
As medical experts point out, until a vaccine becomes available, social distancing is our best tool to help mitigate the coronavirus pandemic and as we open up the economy. Our goal with creating this tool and sharing it at such an early stage, is to help our customers and to encourage others to explore new ideas to keep us safe. (source)
AI in the workplace
Landing AI is a company out of California that will work “closely with you to empower your company to become an AI-driven organization” and they hope to “influence the emerging AI generation.”
Some workplaces may be launching AI technology in the age of social distancing.
One potential use touted for the technology is that it would enable workplaces to monitor their employees to make sure they are operating within the advised distance of each other. It’s even able to issue alerts to remind them to re-establish that distance if they break the rules.
The system works by using an artificial ‘neural network’ that detects individuals and draws a box around them. If two boxes come too close to each other, they are highlighted in red.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Amazon has already introduced similar technology in its warehouses, and has warned workers they could be fired if they violate social distancing guidelines. (source)
So, just in case your workplace isn’t already looking over your shoulder to a sufficient degree, your every move could soon be digitally downloaded.
Your privacy is “safe” with Landing AI.
Oh, and there’s no need for privacy concerns. Landing IA says that those deploying their system should only use it on people who have given their “informed consent.”
The rise of computer vision has opened up important questions about privacy and individual rights; our current system does not recognize individuals, and we urge anyone using such a system to do so with transparency and only with informed consent. (source)
Because we know that’ll happen when they pop this bad boy into the already-existing surveillance cameras in cities across America. They’ll be sure to let us know they’re now also measuring how close e get to our fellow humans too and of course they’d never use other tech to identify “offenders.”
Don’t worry. It’s just to keep us “safe.”
At this point, the word “safe” should now be looked upon with suspicion any time it’s used in a sentence uttered by the government or anyone who contracts with the government. Just like the way people can be kept “safe” by not being allowed to purchase non-essentials (to be determined by the government) from open stores. Or how Baltimore has deployed surveillance drones 24 hours a day to keep people “safe.”
We’ve now crossed the Rubicon between intelligent measures to reduce the spread of illness and authoritarian control. The protests are growing daily.
At some point in the not-so-distant future, people are going to completely rebel and we’ll all be dealing with the fallout. Or potentially worse, nobody will rebel and this will become our everyday lives. We’ll be so “safe” that we’ll never experience true freedom again.
Will the overreach be here to stay?
In the words of Rahm Emmanuel, former mayor of Chicago, President Obama’s Chief of Staff, and senior advisor to President Clinton, “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste. And what I mean by that is it’s an opportunity to do things that you think you could not before.”
Our government, along with governments around the world, are taking those words to heart. Please do not think that surveillance deployed now will just go away if or when the virus is eradicated. Don’t believe it for a minute when you are told the measures are only temporary.
All you have to do is remember the Patriot Act and take a look at your “travel papers” if you’ve got them, to realize the infringements on our freedom happening now are very likely here to stay with only some minor modifications to make us feel like we’re “free” again.
This is dividing our country.
All of this may sound like I support infected people being out there willy-nilly and mingling with everybody else. That’s not the case. You can be concerned about a deadly virus, the economy, and freedom all at the same time. These things are not mutually exclusive.
But we’re being made to feel that you have to choose only one thing to worry about and to hell with the rest. We’re being pitted against one another and that never ends well. And the longer the population is locked up and kept from making a living, the higher tensions are going to rise. Civil unrest is already happening and it’s inevitable that it will get worse.
What do you think of yet another surveillance device being used on us? Are you more concerned with the virus, the economy, or the attacks on personal liberty? Or are you concerned with all of the above? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
About Daisy
Daisy Luther writes about current events, preparedness, frugality, voluntaryism, and the pursuit of liberty on her website, The Organic Prepper. She is widely republished across alternative media and she curates all the most important news links on her aggregate site, PreppersDailyNews.com. Daisy is the best-selling author of 4 books and runs a small digital publishing company. You can find her on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter.
Virus? What virus?
I’ve researched and written about this extensively, and while there -may- be another cold virus out there (they mutate constantly), the actual facts point to there being nothing novel about any of what is happening- except the insane, unconstitutional response based on blatant lies and baseless computer models of course. 🙂
They’ve lied about every other “outbreak”, so I don’t think they’ve suddenly found Jesus in regards to this one. Besides, Fauci himself wrote that this is akin to the seasonal flu and the manipulated data has been admitted in press conferences.
the most laughable thing about this (there is something) is that despite all the surveillance cameras everywhere, now that we’re all wearing masks it’s gonna be a lot harder to track us with facial recognition
I am concerned with all 3 of these. However I do think that they are actually able to see right thru the mask, whether they are N95 or surgical masks or just the homemade type. It’s amazing what they can do now. But the Bible tells us that before the end of days, KNOWLEDGE WILL RUN TO AND FRO, (in other words everywhere all over the world). And that KNOWLEDG WILL INCREADE (from what past generations were capable of) and also that the minds of today are way more intelligent than they ever were, thus computers and AI and so on…Times are changing and not really for the better. We are being pulled away from each other. I see husband and wife together (closer than 6 ft. of course) Boyfriend and girlfriend together, and of course children close to parents, friends together that may live together all closer. Couples are not going to go out in public and keep a 6 ft. distance from one another. That isn’t going to happen. SO will they arrest a husband or a wife b/c in public they were closer than 6 ft. RIDICULOUS!!! People live together therefore they are going to stay together out in public, not walk 6 ft. apart as if they were total strangers that might be infected with this virus. I foresee a MASSIVE CIVIL OULASH OF IT ALL, A POSSIBBLE CIVIL WAR, if they continue to demand and put these restrictions onto people.
Hahaha! Love the face mask impairing facial recognition!! Serves em right!
About AI surveillance- sounds just like Commie China to me! Don’t know how or why any red blooded American would think any part of this is a good thing!
Seems pretty ridiculous to me how the whole country used to be terrified of the Commies and now many seem to welcome the whole Commie lifestyle!
Wake up folks!! The lockdowns were never necessary! It was only done it cause China did it and it was a test to see how far Americans could be pushed into giving up their civil liberties. Seems to me many got caught up in the fear of this unseen threat (real or imaginary) and gave up their liberties for safety. Very bad trade! Founding fathers warned against this very thing.
I so want to hear Trump say to Fauci- “Your FIRED!”
WOW! can’t believe you said that…YES, Trump has past experience with “FIRING PEOPLE” and I bet if the truth is known it’s even on his resume!!! hahaha. FIRE FAUCI (might be a good thing). Trump seems to have surrounded himself with some people that are doing him and the USA more harm than good. His spiritual advisor and Fauci and Birx and some of the others…Sometimes I think he’s a very intelligent business man and is doing the best he can do, but his common sense about his associates may be lacking…He needs to surround himself with people that are on his side and not the ones that don’t agree with him or rolls their eyes when he is on the podium speaking on tv. or shake their head or gets looks on there faces that are saying (nope I don’t agree with that at all)…SO we have a problem!!! Some people just are NOT good judges of character and mess up…I think our POTUS might be one of them unfortunately. Fauci and Gates and Birx all want a vaccine to take care of this and want us to be locked down in the meantime till next year…Do you think the vaccine ill be voluntary (perhaps at first on a temporary basis), however do you not see it becoming mandatory? Well never say never…And when that happens the poop is going to hit the fan like we’ve never see in our lives. CIVIL UNREST will explode I to believe…
If the official numbers are even close (and people tend to think they are far higher, which further proves the point), Covid is the leading cause of death in the United States. Officially there have been 45,638 deaths in the last month or so and from what I have read there have been thousands of deaths more than normal that likely are due to Covid as well, but aren’t in the official count. The level they are going to with the lock downs is unreasonable (Michigan not allowing people to go fishing alone or go to their own vacation homes, but letting non residents go to theirs for example), but saying the lock downs are only being done because of China and are unnecessary doesn’t match the data. The death rate is lower because of the fact that we are having the lock downs. If you have read any of the reports from the front line medical workers, you know that they are being overwhelmed by this disease even with the numbers being far lower than we had originally feared.
That said, the level of surveillance is getting to be too much. I don’t have a problem with LEO using drones and teach them how to do it as part of my job, but they need to do it in the right way. Depending on the use of the drones (and if they are following FAA regulations and proper procedures), they don’t really do anything more than a cop would be able to do just standing on the street. If they follow the proper procedures, it ends up saving lives, both on the LEO side and on the civilian side. If they don’t use them correctly, I could see how it could lead to more deaths on both sides. Like many people have said before, I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a civil war around the corner and sUAS will probably be used by both sides if it does.
Drones have already been used for evil. They could be such a good thing if they were used properly but you already know they won’t be. I do not care to have my privacy invaded by anyone without my explicit permission!
The lockdowns (any of them) completely violate all American’s civil rights on a number of levels.
Constitutional Rights are never suspended for any reason. That is what truly makes America, America.
Land of the free or so it once was.
You seem to trust that our gubmint and their various alphabet agencies are truthful and good. I do not in any way shape or form.
We are therefore at odds but I will agree to disagree.
Look at the photo at the start of video the cover page.
Note the older woman to the top right.. not social distanced but not reconized
The middle red boxed is obviously a couple. Gonna fine people.who live is same house share same car ect as not distancing?
Another load of crap. If this happens here I am sure people will laser the cameras like they did in Hong Kong during protests destroying the cameras sensitive parts.
Or like in netherlands where they are just burning 5g towers because protesting and saying we don’t want this is not being heard.
Even the lost docile animals will become ferocious when faced with no way out.
“I do think that they are actually able to see right thru the mask, whether they are N95 or surgical masks or just the homemade type.”
LOL, I guess we are just going to have to line our masks with tin foil!
So, the question is, just how much freedom do you wish to give up for so called”safety”?? Freedoms come with risks that most mature adults are willing to assume. The overstepping surveillance is to be feared. Speak up now , while you still can.
Anyone can invent anything. They’ve had cars that run on a cup of water or a gl of gas that go a hundred miles since the 80s but y’all ain’t seen them on the streets have ya?
My state and many others are coming back online so it’s a moot point.
Quit chasing boogiemen and keep it real. After the posts I saw the other day there’s a ton of work to be done but this is how you choose to spend your energy and time?
I’m gonna let y’all have this. I’m into real preparedness. Stay safe and I’ll see y’all down the road elsewhere.