Departments say these technologies save time, ease officer shortages, and help cut down on response times. Those sound like fine goals, but this pace of adoption raises an obvious question: Who makes the rules here? In some cases, AI-powered police tech is already driving a wedge between departments and the communities they serve. An investigation found that these drones were deployed more often in poor neighborhoods, and for minor issues like loud music. Departments usually have the leeway to try it first, and see how their communities react after the fact.