NVIDIA ties up with Israeli firm AnyVision for facial recognition cameras

Nvidia, the semiconductor giant, announced recently that is has partnered with AnyVision. AnyVision is a security startup from Israel focusing on Artificial Inteligence. the partnership is aimed at developing facial recognition solutions for video surveillance targeting smart cities. Nvidia’s graphics chips will be used to power the human recognition platform being developed by AnyVision.

This initiative is part of Nvidia’s Metropolis program, through which Nvidia partners with companies around the world to develop AI-powered surveillance technology for cities to one day implement. Its current partners include Cisco, Genetec, Omni AI, and MotionLoft.

AnyVision claims the technology enables cameras that can continuously scan for faces 24/7, automatically identifying and tracking individuals within a large crowd. The cameras are equipped with face recognition technology that can automatically identify and track individuals, both indoors and outdoors. Live information is sent to a machine that’s analyzed by algorithms and human monitors, which then compare the face with its database. A ‘state of the art’ system can find links between ‘contacts and their collaborators’ using social networks, AnyVision said.

The high accuracy rate claimed by AnyVision of 99% is the talking point. ‘By leveraging Nvidia technology, existing CCTV infrastructure in cities worldwide turn into a sophisticated network of smart cameras that allows real-time actionable insights with unmatched accuracy to enhance citizens’ safety,’ AnyVision wrote in a blog post.

AnyVision’s technology is also scalable across all platforms — it can be used on tablets and phones as well as computers. It allows tactical teams on the ground to add suspects to a centralized database while on the go, and can receive live feed from the cities’ cameras and notifications when they’re nearing a person of interest.

This Mashable report on the announcement raises the concern of privacy of citizens while also noting that many lives will be saved by catching at-large criminals quickly and by tracking down individuals who have gone missing.  AnyVision claims that it will put high importance on protecting the personal data that the CCTV cameras capture.

Official website of AnyVision: http://www.anyvision.co/

Reference: 1) Nvidia is creating AI to make cities safer… and a bit disturbing https://mashable.com/2018/02/15/nvidia-developing-facial-recognition-cameras/?utm_cid=hp-h-1#CJfKQ5wPkiqx