Overview

• Police unveiled the AI system in Frankfurt’s Bahnhofsviertel, where 50 fixed camera lenses now perform biometric face matching, demonstrated in a live search drill.
• The legal framework permits use only to find victims of abduction, human trafficking or sexual exploitation, or missing persons, and police also cite counterterrorism searches.
• Targeted searches require prior judicial authorization; since the July 10 launch there were eight potential uses and a district court rejected one request for lack of immediate danger.
• Hesse purchased German-made recognition software for about €700,000 and officials emphasize it is separate from the Hessen-Data/Palantir system.
• Authorities plan to extend the technology to other sites and are evaluating weapon-detection software, as the Greens pursue a constitutional review and the FDP raises civil-liberties concerns, with other states such as Lower Saxony monitoring the pilot.