ZeroEyes Commends Michigan Legislature for Passing Public Act 103 to Mitigate Gun-Related Violence

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Sep 23, 2024, 08:00 ET

Entirety of Funding Fully Allocated as Michigan Schools Prioritize Student Safety

PHILADELPHIA, Sept. 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- ZeroEyes, the creators of the only AI-based gun detection video analytics platform that holds the US Department of Homeland Security SAFETY Act Designation, commends the Michigan legislature for passing Public Act 103 (PA 103), providing $168 million in general school safety funding and $3 million specifically dedicated for districts to procure AI gun detection software. As of May 1, 2024, all funds have been fully allocated to school districts for safety infrastructure improvements.

Under PA 103, the state provided funds to both districts and nonpublic schools to improve student safety. This included the procurement of firearm detection software like ZeroEyes, which integrates with existing digital security cameras to detect and alert school personnel and first responders to visible firearms on school property. Thanks to this support from Michigan legislators, schools across the state have deployed ZeroEyes software to proactively protect their students and faculty against gun-related threats. This capture effort has resulted in more than 4,000 cameras added to the ZeroEyes platform, and implementation of these cameras has already yielded numerous detections of both lethal and non-lethal firearms that have directly led to positive law enforcement outcomes.

ZeroEyes software is currently live across dozens of Michigan K-12 school districts and non-public schools. The recent PA 103 funding allowed ZeroEyes to expand into 15 additional school districts, protecting thousands of students, staff, and visitors across hundreds of schools.

ZeroEyes' AI gun detection and intelligent situational awareness software layers onto existing digital security cameras. If a gun is identified, images are instantly shared with the ZeroEyes Operations Center (ZOC), the industry's only U.S.-based, fully in-house operation center, which is staffed 24/7/365 by specially trained U.S. military and law enforcement veterans. If these experts determine that the threat is valid, they dispatch alerts and actionable intelligence — including visual description, gun type, and last known location — to local law enforcement and school staff as quickly as 3 to 5 seconds from detection.

"ZeroEyes commends the Michigan legislature and the governor for proactively providing funding to school districts who are looking to implement next generation security capability," said Kieran Carroll, the company's Chief Strategy Officer. "The overwhelming demand we saw coming from school districts that need this mission critical capability and the tangible outcomes that have resulted from this program should further encourage policymakers to expand this grant program in coming years."

To be eligible for funding under PA 103, both districts and nonpublic schools were required to have submitted applications to the Michigan Department of Education. These applications included detailed plans demonstrating how they intended to incorporate community feedback into the allocation of funds. The state of Michigan has seen an extraordinary level of interest, with applications for safety funds exceeding expectations. PA 103 funding that was specific to AI gun detection was 500% over-requested during this cycle, indicative of the demand that school districts have for this mission-critical technology and service.

About ZeroEyes
ZeroEyes delivers a proactive, human-verified AI gun detection software solution that integrates into existing digital security cameras and helps mitigate mass shootings and gun-related violence by reducing response times, providing actionable intelligence with images and delivering clarity among chaos — ultimately saving lives. ZeroEyes' patented solution is recognized by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as a promising anti-terrorism technology and is the first video analytics technology to receive SAFETY Act DT&E Designation.

Founded by Navy SEALs and elite technologists, ZeroEyes dispatches accurate and real-time actionable intelligence about the illegal brandishing of a gun near or in an occupied area or building to local staff and law enforcement with an image of the shooter(s) and location of the threat, as quickly as 3 to 5 seconds from the moment the gun is detected.

The ZeroEyes team also provides consulting, installation assistance and practice drills for active shooter events to enhance safety at schools, corporate and government facilities. Headquartered in the Greater Philadelphia area, the company's affordable and effective gun detection solution has been adopted by the US Department of Defense, leading public K-12 school districts, colleges/universities, healthcare facilities, commercial property groups, manufacturing plants, Fortune 500 corporate campuses, shopping malls, big-box retail stores and more. Learn more about ZeroEyes at ZeroEyes.com.

SOURCE ZeroEyes