Artificial intelligence-powered gun scanners are attracting investors concerned about school violence

School officials could spend at least $2 million on artificial intelligence-based systems to scan for weapons in 26 district buildings as part of a $588 million bond that is expected to be approved by voters next week. The district safety director was already considering improving security, but fear of the threat strengthened the case for the investment.

The move reflects a national trend, as school districts across the country invest billions in fortifications, from artificial intelligence-based detection systems to bulletproof doors, fueled by the specter of gun violence. The U.S. school security industry, valued at $3 billion by IHS Markit estimates, has seen rapid growth since the pandemic, largely driven by public pressure and new funding streams from bonds and federal aid.

But even as officials race to strengthen their campuses, critics say some technologies may offer little more than false comfort.

“Districts are facing tremendous pressure from parents and media attention, as well as specific incidents, to do something,” said Ken Trump, president of National School Safety and Security Services, a Cleveland-based consulting firm. “This dynamic has become more intense than ever before in my time involved in school safety.”

Evolv Technologies Holdings Inc., the company behind the equipment Lancaster is considering, has seen a surge in demand in the education sector. Its systems, which can test 2,000 students per hour, are already in use at high-traffic facilities such as Boston’s TD Garden and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

“The most important thing is to prevent anything from happening to our school,” said Lonnie Plyler, Lancaster’s chief security officer.

However, not everyone is convinced that thanks to the development of technology, schools will be safer. Samantha Viano, an associate professor at George Mason University who is studying the impact of these technologies on a Department of Justice grant, says that while AI systems can provide peace of mind, their effectiveness in preventing violence remains largely anecdotal.

“There’s a lot of money invested in safety equipment, but there’s little research to prove it actually works,” Viano said.

Evolv has faced a lot of controversy. The Federal Trade Commission investigated the company over whether its AI equipment performed as it claimed, and it is now embroiled in a class-action lawsuit alleging it overstated the capabilities of its products.

“We stand behind our technology and are proud to work with hundreds of security and facility professionals around the world on their security plan covering more than 1,100 school buildings,” said Alexandra Ozerkis, spokeswoman for the company.

For companies like Cobalt Service Partners, a private equity-backed buyer of access and security companies, school security is the fastest-growing part of the platform. Co-CEO Tyler Hoffman says he continues to look for new companies to acquire. Since the pandemic, private equity has completed more than 30 deals in the sector, while venture capital firms have invested more than $420 million in 37 deals since 2020, according to PitchBook data.

“We realized that, especially in education, the need and demand for security technologies is particularly high and growing at a particularly rapid rate,” Hoffman said. “Given the prevalence of gun violence, this is the most important issue on everyone’s mind.”

The spending surge has its roots in high-profile school shootings that have shaped the national conversation about campus safety.

Incidents like the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting and the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre led to a wave of grants and legislation. Since then, several states, including Florida and New York, have approved “Alyssa’s Law” – named after Alyssa Alhadeff, who died in the Parkland shooting – which mandates panic warning systems in schools. Today, electronic notification systems that can automatically alert police to emergencies are installed in more than two-thirds of U.S. schools.

In the early 2000s, security cameras were present in approximately one in five schools nationwide. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, they are now almost universal.

(Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun control advocacy organization, is backed by Michael Bloomberg, founder and majority owner of Bloomberg News’ parent company, Bloomberg LP.)

Scams like last month’s in South Carolina — where screenshots of text messages threatening to kill teachers circulated on social media, prompting a flood of frantic calls and emails from parents — also fuel a culture of isolation.

However, not all schools are rushing to adopt a fortress mentality. For example, the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District in California told parents it was leaning toward more open campuses while focusing on wellness services, building upgrades and increased supervision.

Elsewhere, they went to extremes, implementing a range of strengthening measures, including bulletproof desks. West Elementary School in Cullman, Alabama, is piloting KT Security Solutions’ foldable bulletproof shelters. In March, New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced $21 million plans to provide advanced security technology in schools.

Still, experts like Jagdish Khubchandani, a professor at New Mexico State University who studies school violence, caution against overreliance on these expensive technologies. “What is the foundation of this industry? Nobody knows,” Khubchandani said. “A lot of money is being poured into these hardening processes, but there is little evidence that they are effective.”

Khubchandani published an academic article in 2019 that concluded that “none of the current methods used to prevent gun violence in schools have empirical evidence that they actually reduce gun violence in schools.” A separate study conducted in 2022 by a team of researchers from Florida State University, the University of Cincinnati and the University of Nebraska Omaha reached a similar conclusion.

However, for many school principals, the priority is the peace of mind of parents and students.

Adam Neely, principal of Prescott High School in Arizona, said his school’s investment in an artificial intelligence security system has already shown its value in nonviolent situations. Various incidents have been reported since the Volt AI system was integrated with the school’s existing cameras in 2022. In one case, he detected a student suffering from an asthma attack in the hallway; in another, he alerted staff about students stealing from the drama department.

“We often felt like we were constantly in a reactive mode,” Neely said. “I imagine a lot of schools are looking for something like this right now.”

Trump, the security consultant, agreed but cautioned that schools should not rush to invest in products they don’t fully understand.

“Parents are upset, there has been increased attention, and superintendents and boards are responding with physical improvements that are worth paying attention to,” he said. “Often it creates security theater and just the appearance of greater security.”

---