Bots and robbers: Mayor unveils new subway-patrolling NYPD robot
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Mayor Eric Adams and the NYPD unveiled K-5, a new robot that will patrol the Times Square subway station on a temporary basis, on Friday, Sept. 22, 2023. Photo by Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office
By Ryan Schwach
Mayor Eric Adams and the NYPD unveiled a new subway-patrolling robot on Friday, which, despite recent criticism of crime fighting bots, Adams hopes will get a warm reception from New Yorkers.
The blue and white R2-D2-like robot, called K-5, which was initially shown to the public in June, will patrol the Times Square subway station for the next two months as a pilot program. K-5 is outfitted with a camera and can be used by New Yorkers to report crimes or ask questions.
The machine is part of an ever-growing fleet of NYPD robots, which have received criticism due to their cost and potential to infringe on New Yorkers’ privacy.
However, on Friday Mayor Adams hoped to dispel any worries about K-5, arguing it is more cost efficient than its robotic digi-dog cousin and does not use potentially privacy-infringing technologies like facial recognition.
“The NYPD must be on the forefront of technology and be two steps ahead of those utilizing technology to hurt New Yorkers,” Adams said in Manhattan. “Trust me, don't think we're the only ones that are being innovative, bad guys are being innovative all the time.”
According to the mayor and NYPD brass, K-5 will operate for the next two months between midnight and 6 a.m., and during that trial period will be accompanied by a uniformed officer.
“Devices like the K-5 have the possibility to serve as a deterrent to crime, or at least learn best practices while using technology going forward,” Adams said. “At the end of the two months, we will assess the robot’s effectiveness and decide whether and how we continue to use it.”
NYPD brass hopes that the bot’s uniformed handler will be able to help ease the public into the new technology.
“To have a uniform cop walking with it, particularly in the initial, infancy stages, if you will, as we're introducing it to the public,” said NYPD Transit Chief Michael Kemper. “It's very important that the public knows what this robot is, and what its capabilities are.”
Adams said that for the first two weeks, K-5 will be trained to map out its underground beat, and will stay in the station’s main areas, and will not venture onto the numerous platforms in the busy transit hub.
“It will record video that can be reviewed in case of an emergency or a crime,” said Adams. “It will not record audio and it will not use facial recognition. However, the K-5 does have a button that connects you immediately to a live person that New Yorkers can utilize 24/7 with questions, concerns or to report an incident if needed.”
Kemper said the bot “supplements” the already-extensive camera network in the subways, and also tried to dispel any potential issues.
“We understand the K-5 robot will generate some buzz and curiosity,” he said. “Let me be crystal clear and dispel any rumors or concerns about this robot. It will not employ facial recognition technology and any video collected will adhere to the same guidelines as that of any other technology in the NYPD’s current toolbox.”
Dispelling any skepticism or criticism was much of what Adams discussed on Friday. His initial rollout of the K-5 robot, as well as the digi-dog, received sharp criticism from New Yorkers back in June.
“New Yorkers have strong opinions on technology – I like to say 8.3 million New Yorkers, 35 million opinions, so you're going to hear them all but they're going to feel the presence of technology that will continue to keep them safe,” he said. “And while I believe it is our duty to utilize state of the art technology advancements to help keep New Yorkers safe, I believe we must do it wisely and not intrusively.”
Some of those June concerns centered around the cost, worries that were repeated Friday – Adams’ K-5 announcement came shortly after Adams told city agencies to cut their spending by 5 percent.
“There are cameras all over the Times Square subway system in general…and so why do you need to pay for a 400-pound robot to patrol the subway system when you have cameras every night to capture every angle of the station already?” said Shane Ferro, a digital forensics staff attorney at the Legal Aid Society. “It's just like the NYPD wasting money on fun little toys for the mayor to pose with.”
Adams in turn argued that the program is “cost effective” because K-5 is a rental, costing the city $9 an hour when it is up and running.
“That's below minimum wage, and we pay for it when it's being operated,” he said. “So this is a hugely cost effective way, as we deal with very challenging budget restraints, we need to find more cost efficient ways to bring about safety.”
By comparison, the two Boston Dynamics robot dogs the city procured earlier this year cost $750,000 combined.
With K-5, that $9 an hour is an all inclusive cost, according to the 420-pound robot’s manufacturer.
“It's a subscription model and [Adams] was giving the hourly rate at which it would be billed and that is correct,” said Stacy Stephens, the executive vice president,chief client officer and co-founder of Knightscope, K-5’s manufacturer, which was founded in 2013. “The subscription model is inclusive of just about everything…Knightscope is fully responsible for everything, so the robot, the docking station, the software, the service, the maintenance, parts, everything.”
Stephens, a former Texas law enforcement officer, said that the company will pay for any accidental damage of a robot – which could come if it falls down a flight of subway stairs.
“That's not going to happen,” he said. “I'm the kind of person, I won't even say it, because as soon as you do, Murphy's Law.”
However, there have been some reported incidents with the K-5, including in 2016 when one in Palo Alto, California injured a 16-month-old.
Stephens also confirmed Adams’ assertion that any “nefarious damage” will be paid for by the perpetrator.
On Knightscope’s website, the K-5 “fully autonomous outdoor security robot” has a 360-degree, eye-level camera and has more than two million hours of commercial use in the field.
Mayor Eric Adams hoped to limit any criticism of the NYPD’s new patrol robot, arguing that it is cost effective and does not use potentially privacy-infringing technologies like facial recognition. Photo by Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office
The version of the robot on the site is different than the one the city got, Stephens said.
“The City of New York is getting the very first version five of the robot that's on the website,” he said.
Stephens declined to share the cost of manufacturing a K-5 robot.
On top of the cost concerns, in June, Ferro and Legal Aid penned a letter to the inspector general arguing that the city and the Adams administration were violating the Public Oversight of Surveillance Technology Act, or POST Act, which requires the NYPD to issue impact and use policies for each surveillance technology it uses, and requires public notice 90-days prior to the use of any new technology and a public comment period.
“Mayor Adams has not been doing this,” Ferro said. “The NYPD isn't following the law in letting the public know about what these technologies are and how they work.”
Legal Aid said that they have received an acknowledgement to the letter, but not a formal response as of Friday.
In a response on Friday, City Hall said that they feel they are in compliance with the POST Act.
