⚖️Pentagon Puts $30M Into an AI-Powered Lie Detector
TL;DR
The Pentagon is spending $30.3 million on 'Polygraph Next,' pairing AI scoring with sensors that read your body without touching you. Experts quoted call it 'the worst of both worlds' — the latest in a long line of failed attempts to make lie detection work with technology.
The Pentagon is spending $30.3 million on 'Polygraph Next,' pairing AI scoring with sensors that read your body without touching you. Experts quoted call it 'the worst of both worlds' — the latest in a long line of failed attempts to make lie detection work with technology.

Key Points
$30.3 million allocated over five years for the 'Polygraph Next' program
Uses AI/ML scoring algorithms plus 'standoff sensing' to capture physiological signals with no device attached to the subject
Goal is to improve accuracy and reliability over traditional polygraph testing
Reporting draws on a fuller investigation by journalist Amit Katwala into how the system would work
Experts describe AI-enabled lie detection as combining the flaws of both AI and polygraphs, not the strengths of either
Why It Matters
Polygraphs already fail in court for good reason; bolting AI onto the same shaky premise doesn't fix the science, it just gives a discredited tool a more convincing-sounding sales pitch.
Quick Facts
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