Staffordshire Police is using artificial intelligence to improve responses – but a top cop has stressed it “isn’t about replacing the workforce with robots or technology”.
AI cameras have previously been used in a pilot scheme to detect drivers using mobile phones or not wearing seatbelts. Staffordshire Police was involved in the National Highways trial along with forces covering other parts of the country writes local democracy reporter Kerry Ashdown.
Another AI system is set to be deployed in the force’s contact centre to deal with simple queries, such as requests for information, without the need for human involvement.
A report to the Mauy meeting of the Police and Crime Public Performance Panel said: “We are in the process of onboarding a new salesforce livechat onto the salesforce platform with AI known as Bobbi.
“This will bring greater consistency and efficiencies, with Bobbi being able to deal with up to 72% of all enquiries. This will also be deployed into the force website’s ‘contact us’ forms.” Crime commissioner Ben Adams said he was “very keen” to see how work using AI goes.
“I know in some places it has been exceptionally well-received”, he added.
“Cameras that we had that were picking up mobile phone use and no seatbelts are also AI-driven.
“I know that was a national campaign – is there any means for us to invest in that technology and get it back in Staffordshire?”
He also highlighted the victim’s portal, which, since its launch in December 2024, has been used by more than a fifth of victims to track, monitor and receive updates about the progress of their incident.
“That is a technology that is there to help people understand the status of their investigation”, he said.
“I know 1,500 people have contacted their officer in charge through that. For some people it’s perfect – for other not so much, depending on their experience.”
Assistant Chief Constable Emily Clarke said: “It gives victims 24/7 availability to see the updates on their crimes. It’s something that we’re launching in phases – the first phase we’ve launched is around vehicle crime, burglary and criminal damage.
“It’s then going to form part of our new AI function, which will enable quicker contact with us as a service. We’re really keen to look at what technology is available and what we can bring into the service that makes our work more efficient.
“This isn’t about replacing the workforce with robots or technology, but it’s about how we can enhance what we do. We know that if somebody wants to contact us we want to speak to them as quickly as possible, either to signpost them somewhere else or deal with their enquiry.
“It’s about how we can streamline our systems, so that if tasks our call takers are doing can sit elsewhere in the organisation, or we can utilise technology to be more efficient, that will all help ensure we’ve got the most effective workforce to be able to pick up our calls.”
While AI can process vast amounts of information and can be useful, it also needs human oversight.
Parliament’s Home Affairs Committee – chaired by Biddulph MP Dame Karen Bradley – recently published a report into the decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from the Europa League fixture against Aston Villa in November 2025.
A lack of due diligence meant that failures in evidence gathering went unnoticed and unaddressed, said the committee, even in the face of scrutiny by itself.
The evidence used to assess the threat level posed by Maccabi fans was partly based on false information generated by AI that gave a misleading picture of the violence around the fixture with Ajax in Amsterdam.
The gathering of evidence to support the decision is currently subject to an investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
Dame Karen said: “It is an extraordinary measure to decide to ban fans from attending a fixture, particularly in the cultural and political climate that this occurred in. Shockingly, this included unverified information generated by AI.”
