Starting next year, the Home Office plans to use AI-driven facial age estimation to assess the age of asylum seekers. At the UK border, deciding whether someone is 17 or 19 is a consequential judgment. Get it wrong one way, and a vulnerable child loses legal protections they’re entitled to. But if it’s wrong in the other direction, then an adult enters a system designed for minors.
Is this technology ready for such a high-stakes decision?
