Have you heard of WAMI, WAPS, or WAAS? These acronyms refer to persistent surveillance technologies capable of monitoring vast areas in real time. Early programs had technical names like the “Autonomous Real-Time Ground Ubiquitous Surveillance Imaging System” (ARGUS-IS). But over time, they took on more evocative names like “Gorgon Stare.” In Greek mythology, the Gorgons were creatures whose gaze could turn people to stone. The message behind the name is clear: a system that sees everything, all the time.
Even early versions could monitor activity across an area the size of a small city. These systems produced enormous volumes of data, and today, AI tools are making that data more actionable. Solutions like Mind’s Eye don’t just recognize or interpret scenes, they aim to predict behaviour and anticipate future events.
While born in military contexts, these capabilities are rapidly moving into civilian domains. Combined with biometric surveillance and network traffic analysis, they push the boundaries between security and surveillance, protection and control.
Are we ready for technologies that can see everything, remember indefinitely, and act autonomously often without transparency? Can regulators keep pace with systems that evolve faster than the law? It is not just cookies we should be concerned about anymore.