The company behind one of the nation’s largest roadway surveillance camera networks has expanded its technology into the skies.
Flock Safety’s Automated License Plate Readers (ALPR), which have built a massive, interconnected surveillance net across American roadways, have officially taken their technology airborne, according to a MotorBiscuit report. [ed: see Flock Hopper national map here]
As highlighted in a viral X post by Josh Walkos, Flock is rolling out “Flock Alpha”—a highly advanced, autonomous police drone designed to track vehicles and suspects from the sky.
Remember when everyone was told Flock was “just reading license plates”?
Anyway, here’s Flock Alpha, the autonomous drone.
It only flies 60 mph, launches itself, streams thermal video, can be flown from a cops phone and reads your license plate from 2,000 feet. Good stuff. pic.twitter.com/7Swhu8jTOn
Walkos noted the escalating nature of the tech in his post, writing,” Remember when everyone was told Flock was ‘just reading license plates’? Anyway, here’s Flock Alpha, the autonomous drone.”
After partnering with aviation software company Aerodome, Flock launched its “Drone as First Responder” (DFR) platform, expanding its surveillance network beyond fixed cameras.
Its autonomous Flock Alpha drone can launch from a weatherproof docking station in response to 911 calls, gunshot detection alerts or ALPR hits.
Officers can deploy the drone from a smartphone, and it can fly up to 60 mph, often arriving before patrol vehicles.
Equipped with thermal imaging, high-definition cameras and optical zoom, the drone can stream live video to dispatchers and read a vehicle’s license plate from as far as 2,000 feet away.
A lesser-known tech company called Axon is giving Flock a run for its money when it comes to installing license plate-reading cameras powered by artificial intelligence (AI) into streetlights in the name of “public safety.”
Flock says the system is designed to help first responders locate missing people, monitor police pursuits and assess emergencies, while privacy advocates argue it dramatically expands law enforcement’s surveillance capabilities.
Because the company’s ALPRs collect data on all passing vehicles — not just those linked to criminal investigations — critics say adding autonomous drones with thermal imaging and long-range cameras gives law enforcement a far more expansive ability to monitor the public.
Flock cameras now log approximately 20 BILLION vehicle scans every month. That’s not targeted policing of bad guys. That’s mass collection and surveillance - not safety.
Civil liberties groups also argue that without clear limits on when the drones can be deployed, how long collected data can be stored, and who can access it, the technology could be used beyond emergency response.
They say the expansion significantly increases law enforcement’s ability to monitor and track people’s movements.
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