Artificial intelligence is set to play a transformative role in the future of policing, according to a new study by the Accelerated Capability Environment (ACE), which has put forward proposals for a dedicated AI lab to help forces adopt cutting-edge technologies.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) has been clear in its ambition to make the UK a leader in applied, responsible AI. While some forces have already been experimenting with AI tools to tackle specific operational challenges, progress has been fragmented and often limited to niche use cases. The idea of an AI lab is to provide a single focal point where industry, academia and law enforcement can collaborate on trustworthy solutions to complex policing problems.
ACE, the Home Office-backed innovation unit, was tasked with exploring what such a lab might look like. Working with six suppliers, it carried out a discovery exercise to assess how an AI lab could be developed and delivered. The aim was to design an environment where policing partners could test and adopt AI responsibly, with the right support and governance in place.
Two stakeholder workshops brought together experts to explore issues such as systems mapping, technology assessment, capability baselining and value creation. Discussions also covered critical enablers and risks, including skills and talent, access to quality data, governance arrangements, funding models and the physical or virtual set-up of a lab.
The study looked closely at existing strengths in areas like data science, analytics and synthetic data. These capabilities could be harnessed to accelerate development of the lab and provide a strong foundation for scaling innovation across forces.
ACE ultimately produced three design and operating models, labelled bronze, silver and gold. The bronze option represented a continuation of current levels of investment and experimentation. It was dismissed as insufficient to deliver the national step-change sought by NPCC.
The silver option was judged feasible. It would meet policing requirements over the next one to three years by creating a functioning lab capable of delivering significant value. However, ACE recommended the gold option, which it described as a world-leading AI lab with a future-proof design. Under this model, the lab could be operational within 18 months, setting the UK apart internationally in applied policing AI.
The proposed roadmap outlines a three-year programme with defined costs for moving from concept to capability. The report also highlights how ACE itself, which has successfully connected police and government customers with specialist expertise from outside the public sector, can serve as a working model for how an AI lab might operate.
For policing leaders, the findings underline the opportunity to harness AI not just for efficiency but for entirely new ways of working. Responsible adoption, supported by robust governance and collaboration with trusted partners, will be key.
If approved, the AI lab could accelerate the safe and scalable introduction of technologies that free up officers’ time, strengthen investigations and help UK policing stay ahead in a rapidly evolving technological landscape.