The coronavirus pandemic is having a peculiarly American side effect: Gun sales are surging. The stocks of publicly traded guns and ammo companies American Outdoor Brands Corp., Vista Corp., and Sturm Ruger & Co. are up. Sales leaped by more than 19% in January and 17% in February, compared with the same months in 2019, according to Small Arms Analytics & Forecasting. Gun buyers in the United States bought an estimated 1.24 million guns in, January up from 1.04 million the year before, and 1.36 million in February, up from 1.26 million the year before, according to Small Arms Analytics, which bases estimates on background check data. Those millions of new guns are in addition to the approximately 400 million guns American already own.

A security company has shifted its detection strategy from spotting guns to identifying people with a temperature. Launched in 2018, Athena Security's first product uses thermal imaging and computer vision to detect guns concealed under clothing. Now that the coronavirus is an even bigger public health threat than gun violence, the company has a new product: Fever Detection for COVID-19. Lisa Falzone, co-founder and CEO of Athena Security, said the platform combines infrared cameras and an algorithm that analyzes body temperature to detect people who have a temperature higher than 100 degrees. "So when someone comes into a business or an airport, you want to detect fevers to protect employees and customers," she said.

By the end of 2019, there were more than 400 mass shootings in the U.S. It is the highest number of mass killings in the recent history. Gun violence in the United States needs no introduction. U. S. officials have been trying for years to find a solution to this problem, but the number of casualties is still increasing. But what if you were able to stop a shooter before he even begin to shoot? One way to do that is through artificial intelligence.

In March, a gunman walked into two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, opened fire, and killed dozens of worshippers. According to a police official, the suspected gunman was arrested 36 minutes after police were called to the scene. Now, a tech company believes its smart security cameras can prevent attacks like the tragedy in Christchurch, and says it plans to install its AI-powered systems in mosques around the world. Athena Security, the tech company behind the security system, and Al-Ameri International Trading announced the Keep Mosques Safe initiative last week. Al-Ameri International Trading, along with several Islamic non-profit groups, will fund the Keep Mosques Safe effort.

This week Athena Security announces the successful launch and implementation of the world's first artificial intelligence security camera system capable of instantly and accurately recognizing an active shooter before they shoot, alerting law enforcement and verbally alerting the assailant that Police are en route. Historically, security cameras are only as useful as the people actively monitoring them. Without real time oversight, unattended security camera feeds only help to piece together crimes after the fact. Past AI and computer vision technologies provided far too many false positives and therefore could not be deployed because they would erroneously alert law enforcement every couple of minutes rendering them useless. Athena Security's AI-powered system provides authorities with real time video footage helping speed police and medical aid to any type of crime scene decreasing fatalities with faster response times.

This week Athena Security announces the successful launch and implementation of the world's first artificial intelligence security camera system capable of instantly and accurately recognizing an active shooter before they shoot, alerting law enforcement and verbally alerting the assailant that Police are en route. Historically, security cameras are only as useful as the people actively monitoring them. Without real time oversight, unattended security camera feeds only help to piece together crimes after the fact. Past AI and computer vision technologies provided far too many false positives and therefore could not be deployed because they would erroneously alert law enforcement every couple of minutes rendering them useless. Athena Security's AI-powered system provides authorities with real time video footage helping speed police and medical aid to any type of crime scene decreasing fatalities with faster response times.