'Automated suspicion' | Met Police under scrutiny over use of Palantir AI to track employee standards

The Metropolitan Police has confirmed it is using artificial intelligence software from US firm Palantir to analyse sickness, absence and overtime data, prompting criticism from staff representatives and political scrutiny.

As first reported by The Guardian, the force had previously declined to confirm whether it deployed Palantir tech - which is also used by the likes of ICE in the US and the Israeli military - but Scotland Yard has now acknowledged it is running a time-limited pilot that brings together data from multiple internal systems.

The analysis focuses on patterns in sickness levels, absences from duty and overtime, which the force says may correlate with professional standards concerns.

With a headcount of 46,000, the Met is the UK’s largest police force. It has faced sustained criticism in recent years over vetting failures and cultural issues, including the murder of Sarah Everard by serving officer Wayne Couzens and subsequent reviews into discriminatory and misogynistic behaviour.