AI-enabled face recognition can solve difficult and challenging situations in the country: Atul Rai, Co-Founder, Staqu Technologies

Staqu is making huge strides in the e-governance space with its AI-enabled face recognition technology. Atul Rai, Co-founder and CEO of Staqu Technologies, shares with us how AI-enabled video analytics can provide smart monitoring of crowds, perimeters, unattended objects, and vehicles, thereby allowing authorities to monitor critical incidents and respond appropriately

Some edited excerpts:

Staqu has enjoyed great success in the Indian police force with its AI-enabled face recognition technology. How many states have adopted this technology and how many criminal records do you have in your database?
We currently collaborate with nine state police departments and security agencies while maintaining 45 lakh criminal records. JARVIS, our plug-and-play analytical tool is designed to be easily retrofitted by security systems to identify unattended objects and misaligned behaviour, and detect blacklist intrusion or violence across multiple camera streams in real-time. JARVIS’ advanced cutting-edge solutions also enable police departments to closely monitor and scrutinize all activities that occur during a prison call. Additionally, any individual intruding into an unauthorized area or breaching any sensitive zone can be alerted in real-time.

Can you share some details on the successful cases of criminals detected by JARVIS?
Staqu is ushering in a much-needed security revolution by assisting security departments in making sound decisions and apprehending anti-social elements. Police forces were able to identify approximately 22000 criminals and 8 terrorist modules using our technological solution powered by artificial intelligence. We have earned national recognition from the Government of India for our contribution to meeting the safety and security requirements of the security apparatus. Since our inception, we’ve reached several benchmarks, but this one, in particular, has given us the credibility and motivation to tackle even more difficult security problems. JARVIS video analytics provides dependable, dynamic, and comprehensive solutions with over 40 use cases. Insights from more than 85 analytics improve operational intelligence and accelerate situational awareness of our security institutions.

India also witnesses festivals or large events (such as the Kumbh Mela) where there is a large crowd. How can AI-enabled video analytics help?
India is a land of festivities and carnivals. So, on a fairly regular basis, our administration encounters the daunting task of offering security while also preventing large crowds from entering a restricted area in order to avoid a stampede. With an easy-to-use dashboard, AI-enabled video analytics can provide smart monitoring of crowds, perimeters, unattended objects, and vehicles, allowing authorities to monitor critical incidents and respond appropriately. For instance, during the time of any potential crowd building up, JARVIS can easily notify officials with its Footfall Analysis. Similarly, officials can get an estimated wait time for each person in a queue which can help them optimize the total number of queues required or reshuffle the crowd so that safety protocols are maintained. Moreover, JARVIS has the ability to spot any abnormal event and suspicious behaviour of the crowd using existing CCTV cameras.

In the e-governance space, what are some of the prominent use cases for your technology?
Last year, the Bihar State Election Commission evaluated CCTV footage from counting booths employing our video analytics with optical character recognition (OCR) and text recognition. The information obtained by the video analytics solution was hosted on the State Election Commission’s servers, where it was compared to data from the State Election Commission’s webpage. The objective was to guarantee that no votes were manipulated during the counting process in electronic voting machines (EVMs). Following the implementation of JARVIS technology, Bihar panchayat elections held between September 24th and December 12th 2021, received only 400 petitions for review counting, compared to 80 thousand petitions for investigation in previous panchayat elections where traditional methods of counting votes were adopted. Also, as aforementioned, our solutions have been effective in catching criminals as well as digitizing criminal records that were previously curtailed to old and dusty archives in the police department.

What is the plan for the future? Can you share some details on the company’s long-term and short-term strategy?
Staqu’s strategic plan includes incorporating JARVIS technology into all cameras, making them as intelligent as humans. With our product portfolio, we have already solved numerous business challenges in the security, retail, and manufacturing industries. In the coming years, we are therefore extremely motivated to broaden our client base, refine our product portfolio, and establish ourselves in new geographic areas, particularly the United States and the United Kingdom, which offer a diverse range of opportunities for business operation and growth. In terms of revenue, we expect to easily exceed INR 20 crore this fiscal year.