Dubai Police showcased an AI-driven biometric tunnel at GITEX Global 2025 that identifies people by analyzing how they walk, turning movement into a reusable motion fingerprint. Developed with Dubiometrics and presented at the Dubai World Trade Centre, the system uses computer vision and machine learning to measure joint motion, walking rhythm, balance and other traits within a few seconds as a person passes through. The aim is to give investigators a way to recognize individuals when conventional identifiers are unavailable, while integrating with existing facial and fingerprint systems.
What Dubai Police showed at GITEX
The biometric tunnel records a short walking sequence and generates a motion fingerprint for comparison against previously enrolled samples. According to event briefings, the workflow focuses on reliable capture conditions, consistent camera geometry and controlled lighting so that movement can be measured precisely. Dubai Police officials described the project as part of a broader forensic toolkit and indicated it is in an active research and development phase, with demonstrations centered on how motion biometrics can support casework when faces are obscured or conventional video evidence is low resolution. The partner implementation from Dubiometrics emphasizes multimodal correlation, where gait-derived features can be examined alongside other body measurements to improve evidentiary value.
Potential deployments discussed at the show include high-traffic environments such as transport hubs and large venues, where lanes can be instrumented to capture short gait segments without slowing people down. Any operational rollout would require clear signage and procedures for data handling, retention and access controls, with attention to how motion fingerprints are created, stored and compared. Dubai Police said that compliance with UAE privacy requirements remains a design constraint, with evaluations focused on minimizing unnecessary data capture and aligning retention to investigative needs.
How gait recognition fits into policing and privacy
The GITEX reveal arrives as facial recognition faces heightened scrutiny in several jurisdictions, reinforcing interest in complementary methods. Recent challenges highlighted in New York, Detroit and China illustrate how deployments can be curtailed or reviewed when legal guardrails are unclear or when error risks are contested. Courts in Europe have shown openness to motion-based identification in limited circumstances, with gait and body-structure analysis admitted as evidence in at least one criminal case, indicating that such techniques can meet evidentiary thresholds when properly documented and subjected to expert testimony. At the same time, policy debates continue around the maturity of gait analysis, appropriate confidence thresholds and disclosure standards for defendants and oversight bodies.
The tunnel concept positions gait as a supporting biometric that can add value when faces are covered, camera angles are poor or subjects are at a distance. It also underscores the need for rigorous validation studies, transparent accuracy metrics and explicit privacy controls before large-scale deployment. Elsewhere, privacy concerns have led to pauses on some airport biometrics programs, including the suspension of facial recognition boarding at Milan’s Linate Airport pending data protection reviews, a reminder that safeguards and accountability frameworks are often decisive factors for public acceptance. As pilot evaluations continue, Dubai Police is presenting the gait tunnel as a modular capability that can be integrated into multi-biometric workflows rather than a standalone identifier.
Sources: Gulf News, Khaleej Times, Geo News
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By Ji-seo Kim
