The Customs and Border Protection (CBP) wants to add the use of artificial intelligence and more X-rays to the United States' borders to scan for fentanyl and other drugs being smuggled into the country. While these X-rays are not AI-powered, the machine learning tech will help Customs officers fast-track the processes at border entry points into the country.
Additionally, President Joe Biden recently addressed this issue, now urging the Congress' bipartisan bill to be passed and reform the US' border security.
Customs: AI, X-rays to Scan for Fentanyl, Drugs Coming in the US
(Photo : Cheney Orr/Getty Images)
CBP is planning to strengthen and speed up its processes in detecting fentanyl and drugs coming into the US borders through the use of AI and X-rays working side by side to help them. However, this is not the case where the X-rays are AI-powered, rather, work separately to achieve a common goal of stopping its entry into the country.
The Verge reported that CBP already has high-resolution X-rays with them, and AI will help speed up the process of detecting fentanyl from the results of these machines as they pass through. This would save Customs officers the hassle of checking the cars and their X-rays one by one.
Additionally, the CBP already has these machines but has not yet installed them as Congress has not yet allocated the funds needed for its application. As much as 90 percent of the Fentanyl seized by the CBP were smuggled through borders by US citizens.
In the latest State of the Union Address of POTUS Biden, he claimed that he is working with bipartisan Senators to create the "toughest set of border security reforms we've ever seen."
The POTUS is also urging Congress to pass this bill which will result in hiring 1,500 more border security officers and more.
100 more high-tech drug detection machines to significantly increase the ability to screen and stop vehicles from smuggling fentanyl into America.
President Joe Biden
Artificial Intelligence for Security and Detection
The United States is known for putting a massive focus on AI and what it may cause to the public should it go out of hand or to bad actors who will harness it for negative implications on society. As part of its research, the country looks toward advancing safeguards against the potential threats that advanced AI may bring to the world, centering on national security threats, AI weaponization, and more.
That being said, artificial intelligence is now applied in various fields for detection capabilities, with the medical industry seeing its use in detecting COVID-19 using chest X-rays.
While the medical field is different from national security, this almost same ideology in using AI to analyze X-ray results is what the CBP is focusing on now for its enhanced border security measures.
As the POTUS is now urging the passing of this new immigration bill, the measure towards improving more of detection and controlling drugs at US borders is at a standstill. Customs wants AI and X-rays to help more of its processes on US borders to stop the entry of fentanyl among other illegal drugs in the country, now awaiting its passing on Congress for additional funding.
