{
  "id": 9749084,
  "title": "The Pentagon wants $30 million to build an AI-powered lie detector",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/25/the-pentagon-wants-30-million-to-build-an-ai-powered-lie-detector",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-09-25T09:16:25.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "MIT Technology Review",
    "slug": "mit-technology-review",
    "url": "https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/09/25/1145144/pentagon-ai-lie-detector/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The US government has proposed a $30.3 million investment over five years to develop an enhanced lie detector known as \"Polygraph+\" or \"Polygraph Next\", according to a Department of Defense budget request. The initiative aims to harness artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning algorithms, coupled with a technique called \"standoff sensing,\" which involves gathering physiological data remotely without attaching devices to the subject. The Pentagon intends to refine federal polygraph and credibility assessment methods to enhance accuracy and dependability. However, the project may be one of many past attempts to utilize technology for lie detection, with Professor Kyri Kotsoglou from Northumbria Law School in the UK expressing skepticism about the endeavor's effectiveness. At a time when the Department of Defense is increasingly relying on polygraph tests due to concerns about alleged leaks to the press, this project could further strain the agency. The Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA), responsible for the agency's background checks, will lead the \"Polygraph+\" project, which will be utilized for vetting potential employees and detecting insider threats. While the specific technologies to be employed remain unclear, the DCSA did not respond when asked for additional information. Other Defense Department efforts, such as the Defense Innovation Unit's open submission process in 2023 for deception detection products, may provide insights. Companies such as Presage Technologies, which claims to measure heart rate and breathing rates via standard cameras, and Altec Research, a medical sensor company focusing on non-contact sensing technologies, were selected to develop prototypes. However, the DIU declined to comment on Altec Research's prototype, which reportedly tracks head movement, facial skin temperature, and pore activity.",
  "summary": "The US government wants to spend $30.3 million over the next five years on an improved form of lie detector, according to a Department of Defense budget request. The program, called “Polygraph+” or “Polygraph Next”, will focus on scoring algorithms that use artificial intelligence and machine learning and on a technique called “standoff sensing”, which…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "MIT Technology Review",
        "title": "The Download: the Pentagon’s AI-powered lie detector and young organ limits",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/25/the-download-the-pentagons-ai-powered-lie-detector-and-young-organ",
        "published": "2026-09-25T12:10:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}