In the city that’s home to Microsoft, Redmond Police Chief Darrell Lowe isn’t just watching technological innovation from the sidelines — he’s integrating it into his department’s daily operations.

Lowe, a 30-year law enforcement veteran, views Redmond as the ideal staging ground for a new era of policing that capitalizes on advancements ranging from drones as first responders to artificial intelligence. When he became chief six years ago, his vision was to transform the department into a premier agency; technology has been a cornerstone of that mission.

“The public safety tech space is blowing up right now with a lot of interest and investment and VC money,” Lowe told GeekWire. “Being in Microsoft’s backyard doesn’t hurt, but it’s not like Microsoft is cutting checks for the Redmond Police Department.”

Lowe, who also runs his own public safety tech consultancy, primarily seeks tools that increase staff efficiency and simplify officer tasks. An AI-powered investigative platform from San Francisco-based Longeye fits that bill. Longeye ingests digital information such as surveillance video, phone records, crime scene photos and interviews to analyze data at speeds that exceed human review.

Lowe recently told KING 5 how the tool helped investigators confirm key evidence in a cold case by combing through 60 hours of jail phone calls in minutes.

However, he maintains that such tools are part of the equation rather than the total solution.

“It’s really important for law enforcement agencies and officers not to get lazy and think AI is the answer, because you still have to corroborate whatever that is,” Lowe said.

While AI is a newer addition to Lowe’s tech toolbox, the department has a history of technical adoption. Previous deployments included adhesive GPS trackers fired at cars to catch fleeing suspects and handheld narcotics analyzers that can scan through transparent packaging and identify more than 530 controlled substances, such as fentanyl, methamphetamine, and heroin.

But drones — specifically drones as first responders — are Lowe’s pride and joy. He equates their impact on modern policing to the era when handheld radios replaced police call boxes.

With a current staff of approximately 85 officers, Lowe employs two full-time drone pilots operating from a flight control center equipped with autonomous drones from Seattle-based Brinc and Skydio. Integrated directly into the department’s dispatch system, the drones can launch and arrive on-scene in under two minutes.

Lowe recalls a recent call regarding an individual experiencing a mental health crisis on a street corner. The person was screaming at the sky and waving his arms.

“Typical police response is you send an officer on the ground to make contact. We’ve seen those calls escalate and go wrong,” Lowe said.

Instead, a drone arrived in 30 seconds. From 250 feet, a pilot observed the individual, determined no crime was occurring and no one was in danger, and watched as the person eventually walked away.

“We canceled the ground unit response. There was no need for police contact,” Lowe said.

To address privacy concerns, Lowe implemented a “horizon-first” policy: drone cameras are pointed at the sky during transit and only tilt down once they reach the specific GPS coordinates of a call.

While drones have been a “game changer,” other technologies have hit speed bumps. The Redmond City Council recently paused the department’s license plate reader program following regional concerns about data sharing and whether U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) could access the data.

Redmond PD started deploying Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) this summer to alert officers and analysts when a vehicle linked to a crime, missing person, stolen vehicle, or other critical incident is detected.

Lowe pushed back on what he calls “hysteria” surrounding the technology, arguing that cameras have a proven, valuable place in law enforcement.

“There is no expectation of privacy in a public place on a tax-funded road,” Lowe said, noting that Washington’s tolling cameras often capture more personal data (including driver faces) for longer periods than his ALPR systems. “The privacy concerns, while I understand they are legitimate, they also have to be balanced against what the law says.”

Because the City of Redmond signed a contract to launch the ALPR technology, Lowe noted that the council must now consider any legal ramifications of a potential breach of contract.

Reflecting on a long career that began in an innovative department in Santa Monica, Calif., under then-Chief Jim Butts, Lowe feels fortunate to have technology embedded in his “cop DNA.”

Now he laughs at how much the job description has evolved.

“When we all got into this, we wanted to go out there and catch bad guys … play cops and robbers and that whole thing,” he said. “I never imagined that I’d be negotiating multi-million-dollar, multi-year [tech] contracts as a cop.”

But even with modern advances, Lowe insists technology will never replace an officer’s empathy.

“We can never take the human out of the loop,” he said. “When people contact the police, it’s often not on their best day. It’s to have another human there to empathize and sympathize. It’s the reason why most of us got into this profession — to help others.”

Washington and 35 other states reached a settlement with Hyundai and Kia in which the automakers will provide restitution to consumers and fixes to millions of eligible vehicles nationwide that lacked industry-standard, anti-theft technology.

Washington Attorney General Nick Brown’s office announced details of the settlement Tuesday, in which Hyundai and Kia have agreed to:

• Equip all future vehicles sold in the U.S. with engine immobilizer anti-theft technology;
• Offer free zinc-reinforced ignition cylinder protectors to owners or lessees of eligible vehicles, including vehicles that previously were only eligible for the companies’ software updates;
• Provide up to $4.5 million in restitution to eligible consumers whose cars are damaged by thieves; and
• Pay $4.5 million to the states to defray the costs of the investigation. 

Eligible car owners can receive up $4,500 for a total loss or up to $2,250 for a partial loss, according to compensation details on the settlement website. The claim deadline is March 31, 2027.

An engine immobilizer prevents thieves from starting a vehicle’s engine without the vehicle’s “smart” key, which stores the vehicle’s electronic security code. The lack of the necessary tech on cars resulted in “an epidemic of car thefts and joy riding” across Washington and the country,

“Security is a key piece for families looking to buy a vehicle, but Hyundai and Kia spent years selling people cars that lacked the industry’s standard protections,” Brown said in a statement. “Year after year, consumers have been easily victimized because of the automakers’ failure here.”

In late 2020, teenage boys began posting videos on social media describing how to steal the cars simply by removing a plastic piece under the steering wheel and using a USB cord. Posts with the hashtag “Kia Boys” racked up more than 33 million views on TikTok by September 2022, according to CNBC. The videos included teens engaged in reckless driving of the stolen vehicles.

Despite years of evidence, Hyundai and Kia waited until 2023 to launch a service campaign to update the software on most of the affected vehicles, Brown’s office said. The update was easily bypassed by thieves.

Seattle City Attorney Ann Davison filed a similar lawsuit against Kia and Hyundai in January 2023.

“The corporate choices by the automakers to cut corners have had very negative impacts and put the public at risk in Seattle,” Davison said in a statement Tuesday.

She added, “I am confident that we will prevail in our lawsuit, and the car companies will finally be required to help in the fight to improve public safety. My action is not to replace criminal prosecution of car thieves, but to hold corporate actors accountable for making choices that prioritize profit over public safety.”

In May 2023, Hyundai and Kia agreed to a consumer class-action lawsuit settlement worth $200 million over rampant thefts of the Korean automakers’ vehicles. The Seattle City Attorney’s Office said at the time that it was a “good first step for consumers” but that the settlement involving individual owners “does not include the litigation brought by the City.”

Under the new multistate settlement, eligible consumers will be notified by the companies that they will have one year from the date of the notice to make an appointment to have the zinc-reinforced ignition cylinder protector installed at their local Hyundai or Kia authorized dealerships. Consumers are urged to schedule the installation of the zinc-reinforce ignition cylinder protector as soon as possible.

Consumers who previously installed the software update on their vehicles (or were scheduled to do so) but nonetheless experienced a theft or attempted theft of their vehicle on or after April 29, 2025, are eligible to file a claim for restitution for certain theft and attempted-theft related expenses.  For more information about eligibility and how to submit a claim visit these sites for Hyundai and Kia.