Robotics and policing of the future

In November, an event from the Bitkom series “Police Work of the Future” took place at the Innovation Lab (InnoLab) of the State Office for Central Police Services of North Rhine-Westphalia. Under the theme “Between Tradition and Transformation,” experts from the police, research, and industry discussed the role that robotics could play in security agencies in the future. adesso was of course part of the event. In my blog post, I will give you a report on my experiences and concrete solutions with perspective.

Design thinking as a door opener for innovation

The focus was on the workshop “Robotics and Police Work of the Future,” which my colleague David Neumann and I moderated. The participants developed joint future scenarios based on the design thinking approach. The goal was to identify specific requirements for the use of robotic systems in police work environments.

Design thinking proved to be ideal for bringing together different perspectives and systematically addressing complex issues. The participants considered technical, legal, organizational, and ethical aspects equally and developed solutions based on clearly defined guiding questions. Examples include:

• What tasks can robots sensibly take on in police work?
• How can they increase security, efficiency, and situational awareness?
• What ethical, legal, and organizational requirements must be taken into account?
• How can they be successfully integrated into existing management and operational processes?

Interdisciplinary collaboration as the key

The composition of the groups, consisting of technical, organizational, operational, and ethical experts, ensured that the discussions remained diverse and practical. Under structured moderation, the groups were able to quickly start generating ideas and develop concrete scenarios.

It became clear that the fields of application for robotics in police work are diverse – from situation assessment and hazard prevention to documentation and transport to digital assistants and training and continuing education scenarios.

Concrete solutions with potential

The participants developed numerous ideas covering both short-term and long-term applications. The focus was particularly on:

• Support for dangerous or repetitive tasks
• Transparent decision-making processes involving sensors, AI, and authorizations
• Interoperability with existing operational and command systems
• Training requirements and practical testing and learning environments

In addition, the participants developed concepts for a cross-organizational data platform and a virtual agent that supports control centers in their decision-making by providing a real-time situation overview. The large thematic overlap between the groups was striking: The need for transparent decision-making processes was repeatedly emphasized – especially in the interaction between sensor technology, AI, and authority. Interoperability with existing operational and command systems also played a central role. In addition, the participants highlighted both the growing need for training and the desire for practical experimental environments in order to test new technologies in a realistic setting.

A shared vision of the future

The event showed that robotics offers enormous potential for the further development of police work – provided that technical, legal, and operational requirements are considered holistically and implemented in close cooperation between authorities, research, and industry.

I would like to thank all participants and the North Rhine-Westphalia police force for their constructive cooperation. The results provide valuable impetus for future innovation projects, such as the AI Campus, where authorities can conduct practical experiments with AI and data-driven technologies.

My conclusion

Interdisciplinary collaboration and methods such as design thinking are crucial to mastering the challenges of tomorrow's police work. Our experts not only contribute their technical expertise, but also their ability to bring together people from a wide range of disciplines and to shape creative processes. In this way, innovations are not only conceived – they are put into practice.