Stefan Leipold CEO of STARKinc.biz & ProsSysCo.biz.
In today’s age, it has become a huge challenge—financially, mentally and physically—to operate brick-and-mortar stores in retail. We have all have seen the videos in the news of people boldly walking with suitcases into stores and emptying out shelves without any legal consequences. Retail chains have closed down locations, citing loss as a reason, and often instruct employees not to interfere with thieves because human life is more valuable than merchandise.
In one retail chain, my company implemented an AI-based facial recognition system that is connected directly to a secure database of known perpetrators and shoplifters. The stores have to install a new camera system, which is based on the network and power over ethernet (POE). The cameras face the entrance to the store and products in high demand for shoplifting in supermarkets: for example, meat or ice cream. If a customer enters the building, his face is automatically recognized by AI. Even if the person wears a baseball cap, grows a beard, or uses other means of disguise, his facial biometrics can be recognized. Instantly, the cameras capture a picture and compare the biometrics with the secure database of the provider. If a customer has been found in the database immediately, the security team will receive a notification on their phones or tablets with the individual’s current picture and alternative picture and location in the store.
Of course, as with every system built by humans, we will have false positives, and for that reason it’s up to the human beings on the security team to immediately see the submitted videos on a mobile device and make sure not to bother customers due to false positives.
Technology like this can also be used in any other public places because artificial intelligence can also learn about body language and behavioral language to detect and, in the future, even avoid robberies by noticing suspects with suspicious behavior. It’s basically “if you see something, say something” version 2.0.
We are not the only ones implementing this technology; after closing down multiple locations, retail giant Walmart implemented AI software in multiple stores to counter the skyrocketing losses shoplifting can cause.
Hardware and software supplier Nvidia also created AI workflows to help retailers tackle theft and fraud by using computer vision to “track objects across multiple cameras throughout retail stores.”
It’s obvious that tools like these will not be solutions that reduce shoplifting to zero, but the technology is a step in the right direction to make it harder and have security teams stop known shoplifters at the door and update the database they use regularly with new information about old and new shoplifters.
Of course, there is an ethical aspect to it to consider. Many people are concerned about AI taking over. But the artificial intelligence that we are using in 2023 is new to us as individuals; however, the military already uses AI technology (paywall) for operations. I believe the future of AI is inevitable due to the devices we use to make our daily lives easier. The simple fact is that everybody uses voice-controlled cell phones for personal purposes, and many don’t think about the fact that this tool is a form of artificial intelligence called voice AI.
I think the sad but important question to ask ourselves is this: Are we willing to accept AI to reduce crime so the stores can stay open and citizens have a job? It’s a moral and ethical question: Should we give up a little bit of our privacy to keep retail stores open? How would you answer the question for yourself?
The downside of the use of AI in any kind of retail environment with facial recognition is sadly that when implementation happens quickly, it may violate people’s privacy because the legal system and lawmakers haven’t had the chance to catch up. The majority of customers are likely to ignore the information, signs or facial recognition tools and the data about themselves that a company keeps. It’s very similar to agreeing to cookies on a website without actually reading what they do. Many customers won’t understand which data is actually stored where and used in what way. The collective data may be shared from multiple corporations with law enforcement, which then has the opportunity to compare faces of non-perpetrators and have an easier time prosecuting those who are guilty. So far, I haven’t seen any AI providers actually release a clear statement about where all the sensitive data from these systems is being stored or how it is protected and used. The AI market is opening up and has a lot of players, so there is no best solution available right now because they are all in the baby phase. As with every operating system or technology that we implement into our lives—for example, bring your own device (BYOD) or the Internet of Things (IoT)—time will eventually show its positive and negative aspects for both individuals and businesses.
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