EPIC v. AI Commission: Internal Report Alludes to ‘Mass Surveillance,’ ‘Streets Carpeted with Cameras’

In a FOIA lawsuit, EPIC has obtained more documents from the Commission on Artificial Intelligence. The records include internal correspondence and an unattributed report about China's social scoring, facial recognition tools, and AI-based surveillance. The internal report highlights the "draconian" consequences of China's AI use but states that "Mass surveillance is a killer application" for AI and that "having streets carpeted with cameras is good infrastructure for smart cities[.]" The Commission's disclosure to EPIC follows a ruling in EPIC v. AI Commission that the Commission is subject to the FOIA. The AI Commission held over 200 secret meetings with tech firms, defense contractors, and others. EPIC is also litigating to enforce the Commission's obligation to hold open meetings. The case is EPIC v. National Security Commission on AI, No. 19-2906 (D.D.C.).