Nearly two-thirds of law enforcement personnel reported their agencies use artificial intelligence to some degree for administrative, forensics or social media risk analysis work, according to an Accenture survey released Monday at the International Association of Chiefs of Police conference in Orlando, Florida.

The Dublin, Ireland-based consulting company surveyed 309 employees from policing organizations across six countries, including the U.S., and found 76 percent expected to need new digital skills within five years.

Half indicated they were open to the necessary training, if offered by their employers.

“Now is the time where police executives need to focus on what they need for the future,” said Jody Weis, former Chicago Police Department superintendent and a public safety lead at Accenture. “People are going to have to be more technically savvy.”

Weis described a “healthy skepticism” he sees among law enforcement officials regarding innovations, but said the mindset that departments have gotten by without disruptive technology in the past needs to change.

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