Hong Kong police launch AI-powered national security platform for school pupils

Hong Kong police have launched an artificial intelligence-powered national security education platform for pupils.

The NSmarties AI Interactive Platform was officially launched last week at a ceremony at Precious Blood Primary School in Ap Lei Chau, with about 700 pupils attending, police said in a social media post.

Police commissioner Joe Chow said during the ceremony that the campaign aimed to “plant the seeds of national security in students’ hearts,” according to the post.

See also: Hong Kong schools on ‘frontline’ of preventing ‘soft resistance,’ education minister says

The platform, jointly developed by police and Hong Kong Qianfan Technology, allows students to generate personalised stories centred on China’s “holistic approach to national security” – a framework advocated by President Xi Jinping that covers areas ranging from politics and the economy to ecology and technology.

It also features the voices of Chow and security chief Chris Tang, who explain the city’s national security laws and security information.

The ceremony marked a “milestone” for national security entering the city’s schools using innovative technologies, police said.

The NSmarties platform was first unveiled on National Security Education Day in April, but it was not fully launched to the public at that time.

Hong Kong has strengthened national security education alongside a crackdown since Beijing imposed a national security law in 2020 following the 2019 protests and unrest.

Beijing inserted national security legislation directly into Hong Kong’s mini-constitution in June 2020 following a year of pro-democracy protests and unrest. It criminalised subversion, secession, collusion with foreign forces and terrorist acts – broadly defined to include disruption to transport and other infrastructure. The move gave police sweeping new powers and led to hundreds of arrests amid new legal precedents, while dozens of civil society groups disappeared. The authorities say it restored stability and peace to the city, rejecting criticism from trade partners, the UN and NGOs.

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