Last week, thousands of security professionals gathered in Las Vegas for the premier security event of the year — ISC West 2024. Over four action-packed days, attendees explored state-of-the-art products, learned from industry experts, and networked with peers. But one topic dominated the conversation: AI.

ISC West is renowned for its focus on cutting-edge security trends, and this year AI arose as the undisputed star. Attendees had the opportunity to engage with brands leading the way in AI innovation, gaining valuable insights through product demonstrations and thought-provoking panel sessions. 

AI trends on display at ISC West 2024

AI’s rapid technological advancements are transforming the security industry in real time, paving the way for more proactive and impactful approaches. These innovative solutions empower security teams to achieve unparalleled levels of productivity and effectiveness, ultimately boosting the ROI across the entire security infrastructure.

With the massive potential of this technology, AI’s prominence at ISC West comes as no surprise. Let’s dive into the key AI topics that took center stage at the event.

But first: Bryanna Comilang of Ambient.ai hit the expo floor to discover what attendees most looked forward to at the event. Watch the video to find out what she learned.

“Seeing” the world with computer vision

Computer vision (CV) was a major force at ISC West. This technology allows AI systems to “see” and interpret a scene, enabling real-time insights and detections of security threats from video footage.

Here are some capabilities showcased by CV security products at ISC West:

• Weapon detection: CV-driven surveillance systems can automatically identify a person brandishing a firearm or a knife in real-time, enabling a rapid response from security teams.
• Perimeter security: Applying CV to existing security cameras allows for proactive monitoring of restricted areas 24/7 and immediate detection of unauthorized access attempts.
• License plate recognition (LPR): LPR technology powered by CV can automatically capture and read license plates, facilitating automated access control and identifying stolen vehicles or those on watchlists.

Upholding responsible AI practices & protections

As the security industry continues to embrace AI, it’s paramount to ensure ethical practices and privacy protections are in place. Likewise, responsible AI remained a key focus at ISC West.

Discussions centered on mitigating bias in AI algorithms, protecting personally identifiable information (PII), and fostering fair and ethical implementation across the board.

Notable security and privacy practices on display at the event included: 

• Diverse, representative training data: Developing and training AI models with large, diverse datasets that accurately reflect the real world.
• Facial recognition caution: Some exhibitors chose not to incorporate facial recognition in their products to safeguard individuals’ privacy.
• Data security measures: Emphasis on data security practices like encryption of data-at-rest and data-in-transit.
• Regulatory compliance: Adherence to local and global privacy regulations (GDPR, CCPA).

Responsibly-built AI is just one element you should take into account when procuring a solution. Check out our guide to everything you must know about AI and what to consider when evaluating AI technology.

Talking to your tech with natural language processing

Think of natural language processing (NLP) as the link connecting human language and computer comprehension. This branch of AI allows you to communicate with your security system using spoken words or text.

NLP eliminates the need for complex commands or menus, allowing end users to communicate naturally with their security platform in a seamless, intuitive manner.

Check out Ambient.ai Sr. Solutions Engineer Jody Russell’s insights for a deep dive into NLP’s presence at ISC West. For a quick rundown, here are two key areas where ISC West attendees saw NLP on display:

• Security investigations: With NLP, labor-intensive video reviews are a thing of the past. Security teams can quickly search through footage with just a few phrases to get instant investigation results. 
• Data analytics: NLP rapidly speeds up the data retrieval process. Instead of burying themselves in dashboards, security personnel can gain immediate access to data by simply telling the application what they’re looking for. 

Shifting from reactive to proactive security

When talking about AI in security, it’s hard not to mention proactivity. Likewise, the conversations at ISC West inevitably turned to AI’s potential for more proactive approaches.

For decades, physical security has been entrenched in the reactive world: hundreds of unmonitored cameras, countless alarms requiring review, and overwhelmed personnel constantly playing catch-up.

AI offers a paradigm shift — detecting precursors to incidents for proactive prevention, arming personnel with crucial situational awareness, empowering responders to rapidly mitigate developing threats, and so much more.

If you walked away from ISC West ready to check out an AI-powered platform that enables truly proactive security, then we’re thrilled to introduce you to Ambient.ai. 

Ambient.ai is a unified, AI-powered physical security platform that helps leading enterprise organizations reduce risk, improve security operational efficiency, and gain critical insights.

See how the SentinelOne team uses Ambient.ai to secure their global sites:

Explore the impact that Ambient.ai’s AI physical security can have on your operations.