Robots monitor for ‘undesirable behaviour’ in Singapore

Singapore is trialling autonomous robots to patrol busy public spaces and monitor for “undesirable social behaviours” such as smoking in prohibited areas, illegal hawking, improperly parking bicycles and flouting COVID safety measures.

Officials claim that the robots will reduce the manpower needed for foot patrols, freeing up staff time for more tasks but others warn of civil liberties risks and the normalisation of digital surveillance.

During the three-week pilot, the robots named ‘Xavier’ will patrol the Toa Payoh Central area. On detection of rule-breaking they will send real-time alerts to the control centre and display messages “to educate the public and deter such behaviours”.
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