A police robot of almost 200 kilos and just over a meter and a half tall will patrol the busy metro station in Madrid for the next two months. Times Square, in the center of New York and possibly the busiest in the city, as the authorities announced this Friday.
In a press conference, the mayor, Eric Adams, presented the robot as “K5” and noted that its mission will be to improve subway security on the shift from midnight to 6 in the morning, although he will not be alone, as he will be accompanied by a police officer.
Adams and police officials (NYPD) highlighted that the K5 robot can record video in high definition, with a 360 degree angle, which can be useful in the event of an emergency or crime, but does not sound, nor does it use facial recognition technologies.
The mayor said that its cost will be about 9 dollars an hour (about 8.43 euros), “below the minimum wage”, and stressed that the use of robots and other technologies, such as drones, allow “saving thousands of dollars” by “deploying labor” in a more “appropriate” way.
The Administration has not purchased it, but is renting it for a “pilot program” to the manufacturer, Knightscope, which promotes it as a “fully autonomous security robot for indoor and outdoor use.”