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There’s a new robot policeman patrolling the Times Square subway station

September 25, 2023 0
There’s a new robot policeman patrolling the Times Square subway station

If you happen to ride the subway at Times Square between midnight and 6am, prepare to see a different kind of cop patrolling the station.

On Friday, Mayor Eric Adams unveiled K5, a robot cop that weighs about 420 pounds and stands at about 5-foot-3, to monitor the area overnight as part of a pilot program taking place over the next two months, Gothamist reports. 

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K5, which comes from California-based company Knightscope, has begun mapping out the subway station with the help of a human officer and will do so for the next two weeks before the pilot program officially starts, Adams said at Friday’s press conference.

It’s being leased for $9 an hour, operates at a maximum speed of 3 miles per hour, has a 360-degree view to record only video, and will not use any facial recognition technology. It also has a button riders can press to connect with a person.

During this pilot program, don’t expect to see K5 on any train platforms. The robocop will only make rounds within the station’s mezzanine levels to serve as a “mobile camera” for subway riders, according to The New York Times.

Mayor Adams at the press conference said these robots will “serve as an important, innovative deterrent to crime so we can keep NYC the safest big city in America.”

New Yorkers have taken to social media to question the NYPD’s new portly pal:


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