The Year Law Enforcement Intelligence Sharing Transformed: 2024’s Breakthroughs and What’s Next

Looking back at 2024, I am amazed by how quickly technology is moving regarding information and intelligence sharing in law enforcement. The past year has seen rapid technological advancements, shifting priorities in favor of intel/info flow, and the continued integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into law enforcement workflows. Here are some observations from 2024: 

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Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger Information Sharing 

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One of the most significant trends this year is the shift toward more dynamic and real-time information sharing. Traditional methods of sharing intelligence — whether through email or phone calls — are simply not fast or efficient enough to keep up with the pace of demand in modern agencies. Further, these traditional methods don’t contain all the necessary information officers expect. Data needs to be accessible immediately, shared securely, and analyzed quickly to make decisions in the field. We all know split-second decisions are critical during incident responses, and having readily accessible information enables accurate ones.

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Moreover, information needs to be triaged to the right person in the department at the right time. As the Real Time Crime Center (RTCC) concept proliferates, there is more data moving more quickly through our public safety agencies. Information overload is no longer acceptable – being agile with information collection, communication, and action is critical. 

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With BLTN, I’ve witnessed a tangible shift in how law enforcement agencies can distribute and receive information, alerts, and intelligence. Automated bulletins, alerts, and updates can now be created and sent instantly to the right people — whether it’s a patrol officer in the field, a detective at a station, an analyst at a fusion center, or an entire department. This quick exchange of the right information changes how investigations unfold and how agencies respond to public safety threats. The old processes are no longer keeping up with information demand, and the pivot to faster and more dynamic information sharing is finally here. I’m excited. 

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From Static to Dynamic 

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After 9/11, the term ‘information sharing’ became a common cause across law enforcement and national security agencies. But in those days, the data was different - highly structured databases and systems of information captured by a person about an incident or event. It was static, guarded, and often difficult to coordinate its analysis to develop meaningful intelligence. 

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More recently, we’ve seen the type and mode of “information” shift as data has become more omnipresent. Today, everything is data - video, photos, voice notes - anything that can be captured digitally. Sharing has morphed beyond incident reports and mugshots in a records management system. Today, it is all of those things and more. It’s a video captured on a Ring camera; it’s a voice note shared through a chat service. It’s metadata from a variety of sources in the area. Users need to be able to manipulate this data to collaborate.

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This reimagination is why static documents and old processes can no longer support a truly modern police agency. Structured database sharing was a good start, but it is not cutting edge in 2024. This is one reason BLTN was developed - to provide a modern information-sharing space that enables agencies to handle high volumes of inbound sharing data, modern file formats, and, of course, the analysis of this data. A year ago, very few agencies would ask us questions about media-rich sharing and file formats; in 2024, that changed. 

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AI Is Transformative, and It's Just Getting Started

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Artificial intelligence has emerged as a key player in law enforcement's evolution of intelligence sharing. AI tools are no longer just the domain of analysts — they are now integrated into daily operations. From helping law enforcement identify patterns in criminal activity to aiding in report writing and other administrative duties, AI is becoming a force multiplier for not only analysts and investigators, but for entire law enforcement agencies. We saw this firsthand at the IACP conference in Boston this year, where the sheer number of companies integrating AI into their platforms and solutions was astounding. (My hot take: while many are claiming “AI,” very few companies are serious AI/ML operations. “AI” in 2024 is the “cloud” buzz of a few years back in our industry). 

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Our engineers are integrating AI into every facet of BLTN and its taking investigations, incident response, and interagency collaboration to the next level. Why ask a highly trained analyst or detective to sift through bulletins during the day when a summary can be generated and delivered while they work on higher-quality projects? Why store information in an old-school email system when a modern database can store and analyze that information in new ways? BLTN can flag collections of information for an analyst or officer and save them hours of investigative time while helping uncover leads that may have otherwise gone unnoticed or undetected. BLTN AI is triaging the right information to those analysts at the right time, creating connections and possible links to produce actionable intelligence while keeping humans on the most critical tasks. 

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The adoption of AI in law enforcement is just getting started. And I am excited to see where this powerful technology takes policing over the next two to five years. Today, AI-powered tools can sift through multiple databases, including records management systems, jail booking systems, or social media activity, and automatically flag relevant information that might have been overlooked in traditional manual searches. The future - which is coming sooner than anticipated -  is then being able to tie sensitive law enforcement information to evidentiary data to open-source information to develop leads,  create intelligence, connect potential cases, and accelerate investigations forward. When combined with proper policy, we are on the verge of a breakthrough in crime reduction and solvability.

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Looking Ahead: Technology and Process Shifts Will Continue to Evolve

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As we move into 2025, it’s clear that the role of information-sharing platforms like BLTN will only continue to grow in need. The combination of faster, more dynamic information sharing across data types and the power of AI is set to further revolutionize law enforcement. As threats and criminal incidents become more sophisticated and agencies are asked to do more with less, the ability to pivot from old, static information-sharing practices to rapid, dynamic, and intelligent processes is critical.

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How will 2025 continue this trajectory toward faster, automated and AI-enabled information sharing? We will continue to see AI and Large Language Models explode across law enforcement technology offerings. Agencies will see that their reluctance to adopt automation and AI severely hampers their investigative capabilities. Over time, communities will expect more rapid responses and better collaboration, which can only occur if agencies are willing to move beyond the old way of sharing information and level up their processes. 

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