In 2017, major police forces began integrating AI and facial recognition technology for identification and crowd monitoring. This deployment raised significant ethical and privacy concerns regarding surveillance and civil liberties. The use of AI in policing represents a complex intersection of technology, law enforcement, and societal values, prompting ongoing discussions about accountability and transparency.

The deployment of AI and facial recognition in policing since 2017 has provoked a wave of dystopian and privacy-focused poetry. Poets have explored themes of anonymity, surveillance, and the ethical implications of technology on personal identity and freedom, thus reflecting contemporary societal anxieties.