An artificial intelligence (AI) camera system caught almost 300 drivers breaking the law during the first three days of its use in the United Kingdom.

Drivers were found to be using mobile phones or not wearing seat belts.

The standalone AI road safety camera is currently in use on the A30 near Launceston, Cornwall.

Although the cameras use artificial intelligence to detect potential crime, all footage is reviewed by a person, Devon and Cornwall Police said.

The system uses multiple cameras with high shutter speeds, an infrared flash, and a lens and filtering system to record clear images of passing vehicles.

Those images are reviewed by artificial intelligence software and those identified as likely containing evidence of a crime are anonymized and sent for a person to review to confirm that a crime has occurred.

The force, which is trialling the system, said that if an offense has been correctly identified, the driver will be sent a warning letter or a notice of anticipated prosecution, depending on the seriousness of the offence.

In the first 72 hours of use, the AI ​​camera system detected:

It detected 590 seat belt offenses and 45 mobile phone offenses on various roads in Devon and Cornwall.

Last year there were 48 traffic deaths and 738 serious injuries on the roads of the two counties.

Adrian Leisk, head of road safety at Devon and Cornwall Police, said: “When we trialled this technology last year we were disappointed by the number of drivers we caught not wearing their seatbelts.

“Early results from our latest deployment show that there is also a problem with mobile phone use while driving, which is both dangerous and illegal.

“We are using this new technology to send a clear message to anyone who continues to use their phone while driving: you will be caught.”