Seattle has been using AI to listen to every 911 medical call since 2023. Nobody was told.
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Seattle's Fire Department has been using Corti, a Copenhagen-based AI startup, to listen to every 911 medical call in real time since December 2023 — without public disclosure, city council approval, or review under Seattle's surveillance ordinance (SMC 14.18). The AI prompts dispatchers to route certain callers to a nurse consultation line, and the department claims a 32% increase in such diversions since deployment. Critics, including a UW law professor, argue the system qualifies as surveillance technology under the ordinance. The case of Pamela Hogan, who died after being routed to a nurse line in 2022, illustrates the life-or-death stakes of such diversions. The story highlights a broader governance gap in municipal AI deployments for emergency services, where transparency and public oversight remain largely absent.
