Antonio Garrastazu, senior director for Latin America and the Caribbean at the International Republican Institute: “Ebrard’s proposal must be understood in the context of the failure of national policy to curb increasing crime and insecurity and as an indirect rebuke toward the contradictory policies of his boss, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, which have focused on hugs not bullets and empowered the military with underwhelming results. Much of the undefined plan leans on common technologies such as facial recognition. Yet, the application of artificial intelligence (AI) to identify criminals and the creation of a database managed by the National Guard makes this proposal not only splashy but also concerning. A central unanswered question remains. How will the AI-generated data be safeguarded to prevent its use for nefarious purposes? Mexico’s armed forces have a dubious privacy and human rights record illustrated by their use of Pegasus software to spy on journalists and activists. Moreover,…”