Published Sep 5, 2026, 3:00 AM EDT
FBI Seeks Predictive AI to Find Threats Across Government Databases
An FBI request seeks predictive AI for threat screening, raising concerns about watchlist errors, opaque correlations and political surveillance.
The FBI is seeking artificial intelligence capable of finding patterns across federal databases and producing predictive models for its Threat Screening Center, the office that maintains the government’s consolidated terrorism watchlist. The procurement request publicly available on SAM.gov moves the debate over “pre-crime” policing beyond local crime maps, and into a federal system that can affect travel, surveillance and encounters with police. The request does not mean the FBI has purchased or deployed the system. It is a March 27 request for information asking companies to describe available technology. Its specifications, however, show the capabilities the bureau wants to develop. The proposed system would create an AI-enabled knowledge base capable of searching databases held across different government systems. It would summarize records, connect identifiers, answer questions in ordinary language and retain citations showing where information originated. The most consequential requirement is “predictive modeling using enhanced data with traceable lineage.” When new information enters the system, the technology would compare it with existing records, identify similarities and correlations, and predict where investigators might find additional relevant information. That language does not say an algorithm could independently declare someone a terrorist or place a person on the watchlist. It describes a tool intended to help analysts find connections and direct additional searches. Those recommendations could still influence decisions about who receives scrutiny, especially if investigators treat an algorithmic correlation as evidence of dangerousness.
