Using AI to Crack Down on Fentanyl Trafficking
Atlanta and the U.S. Border Patrol
Customs and Border Protection Agents (CBP) are using AI to track down the precursor chemicals used in fentanyl production in Mexico to help stop the drug from ever being created.
Altana, a startup that operates a global supply chain platform, is helping Customs and Border Protection agents map how fentanyl ingredients are assembled and shipped to production sites — helping to shut down both. With the addition of Altana’s AI systems, agents can see deeper into fentanyl supply chains, leading to bigger seizures of both finished fentanyl and the chemicals used to make it.
The Altana and CBP partnership has resulted in the seizure of 13,000 pounds of fentanyl precursor chemicals, 10,000 pounds of fentanyl, and 284 arrests.
Helping Cities Remove Toxic Lead Piping Faster
Blue Conduit
In the wake of the Flint Water Crisis, cities across the country are working to remove lead piping to ensure that all citizens have access to safe drinking water. However, locating and removing toxic pipes can be difficult and costly due to dated and inaccurate records of pipe locations. As a result, cities typically have to dig to figure out whether a pipe buried underground is lead or copper — and each dig can cost thousands of dollars.
Researchers at the University of Michigan started BlueConduit, a water analytics company that developed an AI-driven approach to help cities predict the location of lead pipes. When provided with data and variables, such as a home’s age, location, and proximity to water infrastructure, Blue Conduit’s open-source AI tools can accurately predict the location of lead service lines, empowering local officials and their engineering partners with the information to remove those pipes efficiently. The company’s solutions enable cities to focus their resources on digging where the lead is, accelerating the removal of this significant health concern and saving millions of dollars in avoided digs.
Since 2016, the BlueConduit team has worked with more than 250 municipalities and inventoried over two million service lines, which serve more than five million people. The company is part of the Biden Administration’s Get the Lead Out Partnership, a public-private partnership aimed at replacing all of the nation’s lead service lines by 2033.
Enhanced Firearm Detection
ZeroEyes
The company ZeroEyes created an AI-powered, human-verified gun detection system to combat shootings and gun violence in schools, public spaces, businesses, and government buildings.
ZeroEyes integrates its AI technology into existing security camera feeds to constantly scan for any object that appears to be a gun. Once the system detects a gun, it tracks the weapon holder while relaying footage to a team of analysts to quickly confirm the threat. If a threat is confirmed, ZeroEyes dispatches an alert to the client and local law enforcement and tells responding officers where to go and what to look for when they arrive on the scene.
ZeroEyes technology is currently used by schools in over 18 states, serving as a force multiplier in security plans designed to prevent gun violence with the goal of getting better information to first responders faster.