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Axon Board Member Caitlin Kalinowski on VR and the Future of Police Training

Tell us about your background?
I’ve been interested in how things are put together for as long as I can remember. And to understand the inner workings of machinery meant I would take things apart, sometimes much to my parents' chagrin. I credit my stepfather for helping me focus on engineering. He was an experimental physicist at Stanford, and I was privy to a lot of his stories about his professional life in and around the university campus (including riding his BMW bike in the area), so years before I enrolled at Stanford, I was already interested in matriculating there. I went on to buy a motorcycle, study STEM, and graduated with my BS in Engineering in 2007. I later worked for Apple, helping design the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, and went on to leadership roles in the virtual reality domain.

Why did you decide to join Axon's Board of Directors?
Axon is utilizing VR training modules to teach police officers how to deescalate different situations. I decided to join Axon because they are at the crossroads of several different subjects that I care about: policing, community engagement, and using VR to make the world a better place. Axon needed expertise in VR technology and where things are headed, in addition to hardware experience, to help them with their future products. That made a really good mix for me – I could take my background in understanding and building hardware and my years of building VR to help Axon further the usefulness of VR training.

What does ‘tech for good’ mean to you?
Tech for good is applying technology, VR for example, in ways that have measurable, beneficial impacts on people and the world. My interest began with a curiosity in how things were put together, to know how they worked. As I started my career, that interest developed into a desire to use my knowledge and experience in ways that would benefit our lives. It’s not about advancing technology for its own sake. The real challenge – and my real goal – is to create the tools that will improve our lives, the environment, and the world as a whole.

What VR Modules did you find the most impactful or surprising and why?
You’ve heard some version of the phrase, “what you know you don't know, and what you don't know you don’t know?” Well, I realized that much of what Axon’s modules address is not about stopping criminals. First responders must learn to recognize and successfully deal with a range of mental and psychological conditions. Axon's current scenarios cover depression, schizophrenia, dementia, and so on. The goal of these modules isn’t about “catching the bad guy” but rather work to ensure the safety of the subject as well as the officer. Knowing that Axon is recognizing the wider realities that law enforcement faces really encourages me to work harder to design and refine VR tools that will help solve these societal issues.

Can you elaborate on ‘6 degrees of freedom’?
Basically, 6 degrees of freedom is the conversion of real-world movement into movement within a virtual space. Every possible head movement that can be made is on one of these 6 degrees. The VR of today accomplishes movement through interfaces such as headsets and hand controllers that track user movement in either 3- or 6- degrees. It’s a fundamental concept that must be understood in order to make interactions within these virtual spaces as naturalistic as possible. If you want to pursue a career in VR, this concept is important to understand.

How can working on VR at Axon advance my tech career?
Today, Axon is developing VR training for law enforcement, but the tech has so many directions it can go beyond this. Think of complex processes that must be remembered and involve physical movement – and you can apply that to many situations. For example, aircraft mechanics would be able to, in a step-by-step process, learn how to service difficult and complex parts of aircraft. Axon provides you the experience of applying real-world situations to VR, which is going to be happening more and more in the future. With the experience you gain at Axon, you can start to imagine the potential for VR technology in so many ways. Really, we’re just on the ground floor – engineers are going to push the boundaries of VR further and further.

What do Axon’s VR engineering roles look like?
Axon is applying VR in a very specific, yet immensely useful way that not only has positive implications for first responders but has a much greater impact on the communities they serve. Better trained officers mean we get more positive outcomes for more kinds of situations. In short, officers and civilians will be safer, and therefore it will help protect lives. Being an engineer at Axon means you get to be part of a team that’s pioneering these applications in a way that can make VR more than a device for entertainment or convenience – you're transforming VR into an essential, practical tool for training that will only expand into other professions.

Why are diversity, equity, inclusion important in the VR tech space?
More than important, it’s essential. The more diversity among people you have, the more diversity in ideas and approaches you get. And that is the best catalyst for innovation that leads to real advancements. Right now, women make up only 28% of the STEM workforce in the U.S. The percentage of graduates meeting the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks in math and English is at a 15-year low – America is falling behind. If we’re going to give the next generation of STEM youth the best start, then we need to implement some real change – stop focusing on the gaps and start concentrating on diversity advocacy and change within our educational system. They’re going to be our greatest advantage within these fields, including VR.



To learn more about open positions on Axon’s VR team, visit: https://www.axon.com/careers/board?department=4038010003

Apple, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro are trademarks of Apple, Inc. and BMW is a trademark of Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft.


Caitlin Kalinowski
Axon Board of Directors
Caitlin Kalinowski is the Head of VR Hardware for the Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality Division at Facebook and is responsible for the design and engineering of Oculus’s award-winning VR devices. A recognized leader in virtual reality and product design, she serves on the board of Axon Enterprise and is a member of the strategic board for Lesbians Who Tech & Allies, the world’s largest LGBTQ technical organization. Prior to joining Facebook, from 2007 to 2013 Ms. Kalinowski was a Product Design Engineer for Apple, where she led technical teams for the Mac Pro and MacBook Air and was part of the original Unibody MacBook Pro team. From 2005 to 2007, Ms. Kalinowski was a Product Design Engineer for OQO. She holds a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University.


ARTICLE: Axon Board Member, Caitlin Kalinowski Talks Tech and VR

Axon Board Member, Caitlin Kalinowski Talks Tech and VR

Empathy is a critical tool for conflict resolution, and thus public safety. In recent years, VR has established itself as a powerful tool for empathy development. Axon is committed to creating world-class Virtual Reality (VR) training for our law enforcement partners. Training that enhances empathy and understanding to better prepare officers for successful community engagement and outcomes.

Virtual reality simulations leave emotional imprints on users. VR allows a person to literally stand in someone else’s shoes — to see what they see, hear what they hear, and feel what they feel. The inner dialogue, the anxiety, the despair. Experiencing a new perspective results in long-lasting learning for first responders and officers who encounter citizens with a wide variety of challenges on a daily basis. VR allows officers to gain experience responding to situations they may not be fully equipped to handle. Until now.

Axon’s VR training modules provide real-world scenarios that elicit real-world reactions, like increased blood pressure and time-sensitive decision making. Through this training, officers gain confidence in responding to calls for service with new insight, awareness and empathy.

Officers Deserve Better Training on Commonly Encountered Characteristics
When it comes to police training, the traditional “shoot or don’t-shoot” simulations miss the mark. The percentage of civilian interactions resulting in shots fired by officers is exceptionally low, so the "shoot or don't-shoot" approach doesn't equip officers with the day-to-day tools required for the vast majority of community encounters. Axon seeks to create an efficient, modernapproachto everyday policing — comprehensive VR offerings to train for everything else.

Consider these diverse communities we expect our officers to serve:

Suicide & Depression. Depression affects 25% of adults in U.S. and over 130 die death by suicide each day. 

Anxiety. Affects 18% of adults and, while treatable, only 37% receive treatment.

Alzheimer’s & Dementia. Millions afflicted nationwide.

Autism. Wide spectrum and rapid increase in prevalence, as 1 in 54 children in the U.S. are diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder.

That’s a tall order, and it’s why four of our initial VR modules address empathetic de-escalation techniques in situations relating to Suicide, Autism, Schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s. Is the person really disobeying commands or is he unable to hear, understand or respond in typical fashion? Can stimuli be reduced and the subject engaged? The ability to recognize signs and symptoms and employ appropriate communication strategies for the situation at hand can help everybody get home safely. But such skills require training we can’t expect officers to be effective without.

Axon’s VR Library Is Rapidly Expanding
We’ve already made great strides in enhancing awareness through the release of powerful VR empathy training modules, but much more is needed to create positive change in law enforcement for better community relations and outcomes. To that end, Axon continues to expand our VR offerings. Coming soon:

Each training module is vetted by subject matter experts and agency and community partners. This includes clinicians, crisis intervention specialists, and mental health counselors to ensure each virtual interaction depicts real-life circumstances, recommends best practices, and provides accurate resources.

Our ever-changing world is complex with crises occurring every day in our communities. That’s why Axon’s mission to obsolete the bullet and develop technologies with profound societal impact is so important. We are doing all we can to prepare our nation's first responders and law enforcement professionals for successful community engagement through relevant and impactful VR training topics for all experience levels. Empathy is at the heart of this training, as it should be, with an emphasis on de-escalation techniques.


Because everyone deserves to get home safe.

If you’d like to join us in our mission, explore our open careers. Our VR team (along with all of Axon) is growing!

About the Author: Pam Petersen joined Axon’s in-house legal team in May 2012—the same month sheriff’s deputies used a TASER energy weapon to save her daughter’s life. Pam is passionate about Axon’s mission to Protect Life and our less-lethal products that give law enforcement more options to do just that. Her unique combination of personal and professional experience, as a parent of a child with mental illness and former Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney for Arizona, provides critical insight into the importance of empathy in policing and mental health interventions.

ARTICLE: The Future of Training includes VR Empathy

The Future of Training includes VR Empathy

Fleet 3 isn’t the only thing hitting the road this summer! From now through year-end, Axon is taking off in our brand-new Axon Voyager trailers to meet public safety agencies on their home turf for in-person product demo days with Skydio and Verizon.

The Axon Roadshow kicked off on June 17 with a stop at LAPD. Over the course of the next six months, three custom Axon Voyager trailers will visit all 48 contiguous United States to provide demos of some of our latest and greatest tech.

Each Axon Voyager trailer comes with a Cradlepoint and Verizon-powered control room for software demos, two VR training bays that allow officers to try Axon’s latest community engagement training modules, and a TASER 7 firing range, where officers can receive hands-on practice with Axon’s latest generation of TASER energy weapon, guided by a TASER Master Instructor.


Inside of Axon Voyager, which includes VR, TASER 7, and software training bays

Axon Roadshow stops are open to all sworn public safety officers and leaders, and are a perfect opportunity to check out the latest Axon technology.

“We are excited for the chance to show agencies the technology we’re working on and hear directly from our customers how we can better serve them and their communities,” says Josh Isner, Axon’s CRO. “We believe that to truly serve our customers and communities - we need to get to know them, their needs and the challenges they face. The Axon Roadshow is the perfect opportunity to show our customers that we are here for them. We are listening and we want their feedback.”

The entrance to one of the Axon Voyager mobile training bays

Axon Roadshow stops will also feature lunch and mount swaps for officers who wish to exchange their current body-worn camera mount for a new mount option at no cost.

Skydio, the industry-leader in autonomous drone technology, will be joining the Axon Roadshow as a title sponsor. Skydio will be onsite at roadshow events providing hands-on demos of products like the Skydio 2, X2 and the recently-launched 3D Scan. Axon is thrilled to be partnering with Skydio on this project, and looks forward to taking to the skies while on the road!


The Skydio booth at an Axon Roadshow event.

Some customers watch a flight demo from a Skydio employee

For more information about roadshow stops and how to attend, contact roadshow@axon.com.

Cradlepoint is a trademark of Cradlepoint, Inc., Skydio, Skydio 2, Skydio 3D Scan, and Skydio X2 are trademarks of Skydio, Inc. and Verizon is a trademark of Verizon Trademark Services, LLC.

Axon, the Delta Logo, Fleet, TASER and TASER 7 are trademarks of Axon Enterprise, Inc., some of which are registered in the US and other countries. For more information visit www.axon.com/legal. All rights reserved. © 2021 Axon Enterprise, Inc.

ARTICLE: Roadshow 2021

Axon hits the road this summer

At Axon, we're incredibly proud to have so many heroic customers doing inspiring work in the world. The RISE Awards were developed to help highlight those untold stories of the everyday heroes among us. From the individual officers who put their lives on the line each day, to public safety agencies who work tirelessly to protect and enhance their communities, to community organizations who work hand in hand with public safety leaders to build a better future, we look forward to highlighting these outstanding partners through this year's RISE Awards!

There are three RISE Award categories:

The RISE Officer award honors three officers who have saved a life or shown exemplary performance in the field. 

The RISE Agency award recognizes a department for making great strides in building up their community. 

The RISE Community award honors a community program working hand in hand with law enforcement to benefit their local community.

"Axon’s RISE Awards showcase the extraordinary courage, compassion and dedication to community demonstrated by officers and agencies across the country,” said Axon CEO and founder Rick Smith. “Our hope is that the stories of heroism and valor highlighted through these awards will inspire others as much as they inspire us."

Visit axon.com/riseawards to nominate an agency, officer or community program that rises above the rest. Nominations from the U.S. and Canada are open July 12 - August 15, 2021. Community voting for nominations will begin on August 16 and close August 30, 2021. Community members, friends and family may vote for one entry per day. The top 10 finalists with the most votes in each category will then be reviewed by a panel of judges and winners will be recognized at Accelerate 2021 in Phoenix, AZ.

Prizes include:

Three RISE Officer winners will receive an all-expense paid trip to Axon Accelerate in Phoenix, AZ November 1-3, 2021. 

One RISE Agency winner will receive $7,500 for their police foundation, police nonprofit or community project of agency’s choosing.

One RISE Community winner will receive $7,500 in funding towards the winning community program.

ARTICLE: Rise Awards 2021 Launch

The 2021 RISE Awards Presented by Axon

Jay Reitz is the Senior Vice President of Software Engineering for Axon. He has extensive knowledge of emerging technologies and the unique ability to optimize performance and capabilities of products related to systems, tools and infrastructure. Jay studied computer science at Stanford University.

How has public safety technology shifted since you started in your role at Axon?

When I first joined Axon in early 2014, body-worn cameras weren't yet widespread, and the consensus was that the devices wouldn't be widely accepted or adopted by law enforcement. Turns out, the perception that they wouldn't be widely accepted was wrong. A groundbreaking scientific study done at Cambridge University showed when body cameras are present, use of force incidents drop by 59% and reports against officers drop by 87%. I was excited about these opportunities from a business perspective, but more excited about how they could support Axon's mission to protect life.

In 2014, the Ferguson, Missouri tragedy started critical conversations about more transparency into critical incidents. In the aftermath of this event, Michael Brown's mother released a statement pleading for peace and urging body-worn camera adoption, which further positioned body cameras as a way to help increase transparency. It brought the importance of what Axon does into focus and our mission onto center stage.


What's the most exciting industry trend you've seen this year?

Ask anyone in tech and they’ll give you the canned answer — AI, connected devices, AR, VR. The cool stuff. What’s underneath that answer is what’s actually interesting. Ethical Artificial Intelligence (AI) and connectivity with deep user empathy can reveal new applications and insights we haven’t even thought of yet; using an engineer’s ability to unwind a problem and seek out new uses for technology and doing all of that with a geographically distributed, wildly committed team with diverse backgrounds. That’s the best trend—putting our talent to work in new ways—to the benefit of humanity. Tell me who else can offer that as part of a job description?

In the Axon ecosystem of products, every offering works together as a connected network, which requires innovative technologies driven by user-focused design. We are increasing customer performance and training and capturing data that impacts people’s lives. This isn’t shopping, ride-sharing, or automated food service. This is tech that reveals a truth about a massively complex set of variables. Customers didn't have this capability before Axon made it a reality.


What sets the Axon engineering team apart from others?

At Axon, protecting life is our focus. Clearly, that differentiates us from other companies. We hire talent with diverse backgrounds who strive toward that mission because it means something to them, and often, their families.

Our product is so focused on people, that the time we spend with customers is outsized compared with most product and software development. Our software engineers work directly with customers, building relationships to understand the needs and challenges that we're committed to solving. Because there is so much overlap between our products and software, our team also has the opportunity for integrated thinking and dynamic design. By making these more extensive connections, engineers can take a more three-dimensional perspective of their work and offer solutions in a way that segmented experience cannot provide.

Since I have been at Axon, the engineering team has grown 40% every year, and we have some of the best possible talent. We look for engineers with people and leadership skills, a sense of creativity, and those who aren't afraid to share big and bold ideas.As we grow, we scale and mature accordingly, but we never let go of the mission as our primary focus. Everything else we do keeps Axon's mission in mind.


How has the pandemic changed Axon's engineering team?

We are constantly thinking about the best work environment for our team and how it may change post-pandemic. We have learned that remote options have allowed for a larger talent pool. With a high demand for engineers, creating a hybrid work environment with a diverse and inclusive team offers even more appeal for those looking for a well-rounded experience. The pandemic brought many challenges, but it also provided some keen insight into how remote or hybrid work environments can increase productivity, especially for engineers.


What are you excited about for the future?

I am excited about that kind of influence--we are taking unique approaches to software development and making a difference in the meantime.


With an audacious goal of making the bullet obsolete, we are continuing to positively impact the world through the products and technology that we develop. You can expect the kind of work we do to end up in history books as a game-changer in law enforcement practices.

To learn more about open roles on Axon’s Engineering team, visit: https://www.axon.com/careers

ARTICLE: Engineering Team Delivers Societal Impact

Axon’s Engineering Team Delivers Outsized Societal Impact

How Axon joined forces to develop the next generation in-car camera system

Over the past 3 years, Axon has been working tirelessly to deliver a breakthrough in-car camera solution for public safety: Axon Fleet 3. As of this week, we are proud to announce that after a series of incredibly successful beta trials, Fleet 3 is now shipping to customers in the US and Canada.

Fleet 3 sets a new bar for in-car video performance with advanced in-car video system features, an AI-powered, fully connected ALPR (Automatic License Plate Reader) service, and real-time situational awareness technology through Axon Respond for Devices. How we got there is an incredible story on its own. But it’s our strategic partnerships, with some of the best providers in the industry, that helped take this solution to the next level.


Axon is excited to expand on our integration partnership with Flock Safety by enabling two-way, seamless data sharing between Flock Safety and Axon ALPR systems, both fixed and mobile, for a disruptively affordable cost. Last year, Flock Safety and Axon announced their ability to push footage from Flock Safety fixed ALPR cameras to Axon’s digital evidence management system, Axon Evidence. With this new integration, footage from Axon Fleet 3 mobile ALPR cameras will also appear alongside Flock Safety footage in the Flock Lookup Experience, allowing users to search across a smart network of multiple ALPR providers within one portal. Flock Safety Lookup allows law enforcement users to see where a known license plate has travelled during a specific timeframe, such as when a crime is known to have occurred. This two-way integration consolidates search for ALPR data into one system to streamline investigators’ workflows, solve a case faster, and ensure that law enforcement has the comprehensive, objective evidence they need all in one place.

“Our partnership with Axon is based on the principles we hold in common: that law enforcement technology can be equal parts effective, affordable, and above all, ethically-designed. The furtherance of our integration ensures our mutual law enforcement customers have a single destination to quickly and accurately obtain leads and clear cases regardless if the camera is fixed on a pole or integrated into a vehicle,” says Garrett Langley, Founder & CEO of Flock Safety.

Cradlepoint’s industry-leading wireless network solutions provide in-vehicle and on-scene connectivity for today’s modern police force. Part of Axon’s Fleet 3 police vehicle solution, the Cradlepoint IBR900 provides secure and reliable cellular and Wi-Fi connectivity that is engineered to work seamlessly with their connected solutions. Law enforcement agencies using Axon Fleet 3 will benefit from Cradlepoint's NetCloud Service which provides cloud-based management, enterprise-grade networking, CJIS-compliant security and industry-leading LTE cellular technology with certified nationwide public safety network support. Cradlepoint offers upgrade paths to the dual-modem IBR1700 or to 5G with the R1900, both of which can be used with Fleet 3.

“Axon’s integration of Cradlepoint’s IBR900 solution within its Fleet 3 offering is a testament to the value our wireless technology plays within today’s law enforcement. Cradlepoint is fully committed to providing secure and reliable LTE and 5G solutions that help keep first responders and public safety personnel safer and more productive. Together with Axon, we are pushing the boundaries of connected technologies and applications that benefit law enforcement agencies and the communities and citizens they serve,” says Eric Purcell, SVP of Partners and Alliances at Cradlepoint.

A leading provider of advanced wireless connectivity solutions and technologies used to enable high-performance networking across a broad range of devices and markets, Airgain antennas are used to reliably connect Fleet 3 in-car and on-officer public safety applications in real-time, over dedicated wireless networks. Airgain delivers industry-leading connectivity solutions for first responders and public sector customers across North America.

“Axon continues to lead the way with next generation in-car video systems that rely on seamless wireless connections to deliver maximum impact. We are proud that Axon selected Airgain as its preferred connectivity partner for Fleet 3, which is a powerful tool that integrates audio, video, and streaming for improving situational awareness. We are especially pleased to continue our relationship with Axon and believe this collaboration will benefit public safety customers by enhancing officer safety,” comments Bill Swafford, Vice President of Sales, North America at Airgain.


A crucial part of building a quality solution is using reliable components suitable for the harsh environment of law enforcement vehicles. Axon Fleet 3 cameras and Hub are powered with Qualcomm Technologies’ advanced processors. These highly integrated systems-on-chips(SOC) include advanced imaging and AI edge processing in the cameras and wireless connectivity and high-speed routing in the Hub. Each platform has software libraries to speed system integration and provide robust security.

To learn more about the capabilities and partnerships for the Fleet 3 in-car camera solution visit https://www.axon.com/products/axon-fleet-3



ARTICLE: Fleet 3

On the heels of Axon’s VR Simulator launch last month, Robert Murphy, Senior Director of Virtual & Augmented Reality, and Jada Williams, VR/AR Design Lead, provide insight into how Axon's Virtual Reality platform is changing the landscape of public safety training as we know it.

In just the few short years since VR’s launch into the public safety realm, we’ve already seen positive training outcomes. And with an audacious mission to obsolete the bullet, we are creating innovative ways to help save lives and building diverse teams to help get us there.

What brought Jada Williams to Axon was the long-term vision to be a part of a societal change for good. As Axon is in a position to produce the tools that can provide that change, she is excited to be at the forefront to embrace the challenges that come with applying technology in new ways, especially in the realm of helping others.

Robert Murphy shared that saving lives weighs heavily on his mind, and is a tremendous responsibility. There aren't many tech jobs that support such an important goal. With Axon's mission in mind and his own desire to make an impact for social good, he was enthusiastic about joining the VR team to apply his talents to create an application that has the capacity to make a significant impact to our society.

In the past three years, VR has gained a lot of ground in training for public safety. Murphy explained that his entry into VR was through gaming, as it is for most people. But he and Williams soon realized it's so much more.

"I was initially skeptical about the application and adoption of VR within public safety. But when you look at the science behind how it can be used and applied in public safety, VR training provides so many benefits. And with both vertical and horizontal applications, we can do so much more with VR."

VR is quickly becoming so much more than gaming- and we believe it will transform public safety. Using VR that places officers in unexpected situations and new encounters in a way that the body and mind remember is beyond what any trainer could hope for. There is room for improvement in de-escalation and decision-making training that helps protect officers and community from harm. VR has quickly become a way to address that in a way that traditional training simply cannot replicate.


"We talk a lot about the embodiment of real empathy," Williams said. "It is more impactful when you are training in 360 degrees, and being able to see a different perspective in a situation that provides the full experience — it's so much more than web training. We've even discovered that you don't need perfectly rendered 3D environments for it to leave an imprint on someone."

VR training provides more context and insight into any given situation and the people involved. For example, VR can produce more personal hands-on stories that cover challenging situations like suicide or domestic violence. It can recreate these stories in such a way that can help shape an officer’s approach to their role in the community they serve. VR literally allows trainees to put themselves in someone else’s shoes. This lets officers work out best practices safely, over and over, with the ability to explore different pathways and outcomes, and debrief on how they handled a given scenario.

"An officer could intervene in a domestic violence situation differently after experiencing this kind of training," Murphy explained. "I couldn't be more proud that we are developing a product that can change or save someone's life."

Furthermore, we are continuing to grow our catalog of scenarios and modules to meet the ever changing, real-life needs and challenges officers see in the field each day. Because of this, our VR team works closely and directly with customers, subject matter experts, and community partners who are tackling these tough problems each day, getting firsthand insight from those who are on the front lines in order to apply this tech in a meaningful way.

VR is still relatively new. There is no playbook for all the different ways it can be used; instead, it takes fresh perspectives and collaboration to determine how to build on the technology. What makes VR at Axon so compelling is that it’s all based on team discussions, trials, experimentations - bringing diverse opinions to the table to develop incredible outcomes. Each person on the team has great ideas and wide experience, which is how we continue to develop products that we are all proud of.

As VR continues to grow, so does Axon’s VR team. A great candidate for our team starts with the passion to serve Axon’s mission to protect life, as well as an eagerness to take VR to new heights.

"When I talk to potential candidates, I want to hear how they've failed before," Williams said. "There's no script, so they have to be comfortable with risk and mistakes because we're pioneers. We're in pursuit of bringing change to an important industry and that's why it's crucial to find those individuals who are willing to step out on a ledge to try something new."


“We're pioneers,” Jada said. ”We're bringing change to an important industry, and it's crucial to find those individuals who are willing to step out on a ledge to try something new.“

There is growing interest in VR for public safety, and we will continue find more uses and ways to improve upon this training technology. As public safety embraces VR, Axon will continue to innovate and further explore what this technology can do.

For more information on Axon’s VR Training, visit: https://www.axon.com/training/vr

To learn more about open VR positions at Axon, visit: https://www.axon.com/careers/board

ARTICLE: VR: More Than Gaming, it’s a Game-Changer for Public Safety

VR: More Than Gaming, it’s a Game-Changer for Public Safety

At Axon our mission is to protect life. We are out to make the world a safer place by solving big problems and taking on the public safety challenges of our time. Since our founding in 1993, we have invested significantly in devices and integrated software solutions to help public safety agencies make their communities safer. Today, more than 17,000 law enforcement agencies in 100+ countries around the world are part of the Axon network.

As a leader in building hardware and software solutions for public safety, Axon is now making considerable strides in the area of Artificial Intelligence (AI). In the Axon ecosystem of products, every offering works together as a connected network, which requires innovative technologies driven by user-focused design every step of the way. By owning and delivering a large portion of the value chain from leading-edge devices to cloud services, there are multiple opportunities for AI to add unique value to our public safety customers and the communities they serve.

Yasser M. Ibrahim, SVP of AI at Axon, explains, "There is a lot to accomplish. There are many areas to explore, and it is truly exciting if you’re a builder and really want to work in an area where there is considerable potential that hasn’t been fully realized yet."

When does an organization need to consider building a solution using AI as opposed to conventional Software Engineering?

The primary question an organization should examine while innovating in this area, is whether the customer problem they are trying to solve really requires an algorithmically and operationally complex approach like AI, instead of a relatively more wieldy technology. For starters, a solution built using AI doesn’t usually give a single concrete answer to a given question or query, instead it gives probabilities representing which set of answers are likely to be correct. Furthermore, this process is not bullet proof as it lacks immunity to producing false positives and even missing the correct answers altogether.

Sometimes the newest technological advancement isn’t the most effective or suitable solution. AI, while becoming an increasingly hot topic in tech and the media, isn’t always the best choice. Instead, innovators need to evaluate the most effective technology options without overcomplicating the development process. Sometimes, the smartest choice is based on tried and tested legacy technology.

Imagine a law enforcement agency needs a dashboard containing crime statistics in a given geographical area. We can provide these reports by utilizing conventional software, including databases and the appropriate query language, to calculate those crime analytics. This is a deterministic approach by definition and as such it would be counterproductive to use AI for the same exact purpose. However, an algorithmic approach would be called for in a more complicated case, such as when a law enforcement agency wants a tool to optimize the allocation of patrol officers over a given geographical area based on myriad set of factors like time of day, crime rate and personnel availability. In this case AI might be a potential candidate for a solution that is worthy of investigating.

To summarize: while conventional software, analytics and AI algorithms maybe overlapping, they all have different purposes, risks and associated development costs. Making it is essential to educate an organization on what AI is and what it isn’t.

Furthermore, AI is quite unsustainable in the long-term unless you can apply it in a responsible manner. Irresponsible AI which doesn’t take into account the impact on society, is easy to implement for small problems, but it’s not scalable. On the other hand, using science and engineering responsibly, although time consuming, provides a competitive advantage because people who ignore ethics will erode both trust and performance over time.


A commitment to innovation, positive impact, and community

Ethics-by-Design is an organizational approach to the responsible use of technology, and as such there needs to be deliberate steps organizations take to implement it. This development cannot be done in a vacuum; its social impact ought to be considered from the beginning. Organizations that use technology ethically consider not only the benefits but also the potential harm to society at every stage of their decision-making process, which is especially important for Axon and how we serve our public safety customers.


“Before you start with new technologies, you have to define how it may impact society.”

To define this impact, Axon has an independent AI Ethics Board that provides expert advice and guidance during product conception and subsequent development. The Ethics Board has developed a framework for analyzing the ethical costs and benefits associated with new products. This is an important framework within Axon, even for products that do not use AI.

To create with an Ethics-by-Design framework, it is important that the team composition reflect the diversity we see in the world. A diverse, and importantly, inclusive team is required so you can apply a spectrum of opinions, genders, ethnicities, income levels and skill sets to a challenge. This allows the team to consider all angles when working with new ideas and products in a way that truly creates groundbreaking technology.

A diverse team that espouses and builds upon those ethical framework guidelines leads to innovation focusing more on how products can positively impact a community at large. With AI employed into the right product, in the right way and at the right time, it can become a great catalyst that helps address tangible societal issues.

Innovation starts with building a world-class AI team

As we grow our AI team, Axon aims to attract a diverse group of talented engineers and scientists at all levels, who are as excited as we are about our Ethics-by-Design ethos. A great candidate for our team starts with the eagerness to understand the customer problem as they responsibly develop an AI solution to address it. We seek candidates who are interested in developing something meaningful and impactful, such as how to operationalize AI in a way that preserves privacy, maintains fairness and avoids bias. It’s not enough to implement the latest and greatest approaches in AI when building new products; a successful candidate has to show they are able to take these ethical considerations into account and address the corresponding design challenges at scale with the team.

At Axon, we focus intently on real problems while developing end-to-end solutions. This requires a multidisciplinary team with the right balance of AI Scientists, ML Engineers, Software Engineers and Product/Program Managers. As the team evolves, we’re looking to include subject matter experts in every AI modality to build proprietary models that include audio, video, text and images for our products.

In addition to building the right team, it is also imperative to keep pace with the ever-changing AI advancements. Still, as we add in novel AI layers to some of our products, we do so with the customer and impact to community in mind. Keeping Ethics-by-Design in the foreground of all we do helps Axon get closer to its goal of providing more effective tools in service of our mission to Protect Life and Preserve the Truth.


Yasser Ibrahim is Axon’s SVP of Artificial Intelligence and leads Axon’s AI Team from the Seattle office. Prior to joining Axon, Yasser served as Amazon’s head of distributed machine learning at Alexa AI. He led applied science and ML engineering teams developing state-of-the-art deep learning frameworks and distributed algorithms powering Alexa’s large scale ML experimentation and production platforms. He also led multidisciplinary engineering and science teams building computer vision systems and computational imaging algorithms for Amazon Go, the world’s first “Just Walk Out” store and technology platform. At Microsoft, Mr. Ibrahim led computer vision system teams to deliver technologies such as Pixelsense, and previously developed flight control and autopilot systems for flight simulators at CAE Inc., in Montreal.


ARTICLE: AI Ethics - The Role of Responsible AI Within the Axon Ecosystem

The Role of Responsible AI Within the Axon Ecosystem

Sam Horwitz is the President of the nonprofit A Badge of Honor. A Badge of Honor was co-founded by two law enforcement officers and a mental health practitioner in 2019 and provides post-traumatic stress and suicide prevention workshops and resources to first responders.

Sam’s connection to public safety stems from personal experience. She served as a member of the United States Secret Service for 3 years and as a local law enforcement officer for 7 years. So Sam knows first-hand the importance of first responders having resources to cope with stress. In addition to A Badge of Honor, Sam works with a female support group that focuses on helping women with their professional development. In her spare time, Sam hangs out with his dogs DaVinci, Frodo, and Lucy and teaches at her local firing range.

Sam would like to dedicate her episode of Family First to the 412 first responders killed on 9/11, as well as first responders we've lost to suicide. “Gone but not forgotten. You are not alone.”



ARTICLE: Family First - Sam Horwitz

Family First Series: 9/11

Jeff McGill is no stranger to the issue of officer mental health. Besides a career of over 22 years in public safety, Jeff’s PhD research focused on the Perceptions of Mental Health and Suicide on Millennial Generation Law Enforcement Academy Recruits.

Together with Karen Solomon, Jeff co-authoredThe Price They Pay,which examines the true struggles of police officers who have been emotionally or physically injured on the job, in order to humanize their experiences. Jeff says he was motivated to go back to school to study the emotional trials of law enforcement because “an academic who had never fought a criminal into handcuffs or been on the wrong end of a gun voiced an opinion on police use of force on television one night and I wanted to have the academic credentials to push back.”

Outside of his research, Jeff takes any chance he can to visit the mountains. He also enjoys various genres of music, because “my mother introduced me to music early on in life and now songs on my playlist are so varied that you never know if the next song is going to help calm the nerves or incite a riot.”


Steven Hough

Steven Hough is the co-founder of Blue H.E.L.P., a nonprofit that provides education and support for officers and families struggling with PTSD and mental health issues.

Steven himself has over 21 years of experience in the public safety industry as a patrol officer, investigator and inspector amongst other jobs. Currently, he still works as an inspector in Baker, Florida. On the weekends, Steven raises cows!

Steven would like to dedicate his episode of Family First to the “families who walked with us through the chaos of that day” and to the first responder families across the country who may need to support their own loved ones through similar circumstances.


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