How Police AI Tools Can Improve Workflow, Benefit Customer Service

Inside a 9-1-1 center, artificial intelligence (AI) can help with voice analytics that flag voice stress, help demystify garbled speech, and even interpret multilingual emergency calls to assist telecommunicators in verifying addresses and the nature of the calls. On patrol, AI and machine learning (ML) turn body-camera footage into field notes, freeing officers to stay present and focused on the conversation. In investigations, victims can receive automatic updates and even add information to their case online. Every layer of the policing workflow becomes more efficient, so that residents feel shorter waits, clearer explanations, and more consistent follow-through. 

Inside the 9-1-1 Center 

Artificial intelligence is demonstrating practical value in day-to-day public safety operations. In Monterey County, California, an AI-driven non-emergency assistant reduced call volume by 30 percent per month, allowing live call-takers to focus on emergent 9-1-1 traffic. At the same time, a national survey of 1,379 communications-center leaders found that 86 percent are now somewhat comfortable with AI helping with call-taking tasks. handling routine tasks such as language translation and automated triage.

Location-based routing and geospatial NG911 upgrades also enhance the officer and telecommunicator experience by reducing call transfer times and enabling callers to text photos or live video, providing officers with richer context before they arrive. The net effect for citizens: less time on hold, no language hurdles, and an operator who already understands what’s unfolding. 

On Patrol: More Listening, Less Typing 

Report writing remains a primary responsibility for patrol officers and investigators. Some companies work to utilize AI to convert body-worn camera footage into written reports that officers only need to edit and verify. With safety nets in place, generative AI-written reports could become a valuable tool for reducing report-writing time. However, with all AI usage, verification and editing are necessary to ensure the technology accurately captures the incident's details. 

Other technologies, such as Google Translate, are utilizing automatic speech-to-text and translation apps that enable officers to deliver Miranda warnings or next-step instructions in more than 180 languages. Speech-to-text apps also allow officers who prefer it to dictate their reports, verifying and editing them after they have been dictated. 

Investigations & Victim Care: Closing Loops, Not Just Cases 

Real-time data-processing platforms that combine video analytics, license-plate readers, and social media scraping are significantly reducing investigative timelines. A 2024 multi-city technical analysis documented a 73% reduction in investigation time and improved cooperation across jurisdictions through the use of real-time data processing systems.

Yet speed means little if victims still feel adrift. Victim assistance applications that push automatic texts or e-mails at each milestone of their case, such as detective assignment, arrest, and case filing, can help victims stay informed. However, national research from 2013 shows that just 23 percent of victims enrolled in automated-notification systems. With proactive outreach and improved online registration, those numbers would hopefully improve. 

Turning Data into Dialogue 

AI can also change how departments tell their story. Real-time resource platforms can track patrol coverage, crime hotspots, and response metrics more quickly and efficiently. With analytics, police chiefs can shift the community and elected officials' conversations to include evidence along with stories of police impact. For elected officials, the payoff is a clear justification for technology budgets. For residents, it is proof—updated daily—that their tax dollars translate into shorter waits and safer streets. 

These gains go beyond efficiency; they reshape the service experience itself. Automated status updates keep victims informed without requiring them to chase case information. Predictive resource mapping positions units closer to likely call hot spots, trimming response times for entire neighborhoods. Chatbots on department websites answer common questions 24/7, guiding residents to online reporting or community resources without a single hold tone.  

Rethinking Customer Service with AI 

When AI operates as a silent partner, handling repeatable tasks and delivering real-time insights, public-safety professionals can devote more attention to empathy, transparency, and the human connection. And when AI shoulders routine tasks—such as translating, transcribing, sorting, and summarizing—public-safety professionals reclaim the bandwidth to focus on policing, using their training and judgment, rather than relying mainly on their typing and data management skills.

Technology matters most when it fits the agency’s long-term strategy, boosting efficiency while directly improving the lives of officers and residents. As AI transitions and becomes more prevalent in law enforcement infrastructure, departments that thoughtfully integrate it into their daily workflows will define the next era of responsive, transparent, and community-centered policing.