Biometrics expert weighs in on AI risks and the persistent power of human judgement

AI's speed of adoption is sidelining human judgment, raising concerns about ethical and safe application.
Vishesh Mistry discusses the need for human oversight and government regulation in AI use, especially in sensitive areas like criminal justice.
Mistry says current regulations are lagging behind growth, leaving the public and small businesses vulnerable to potential harm.

Governments are really falling behind in terms of rules and regulations to make sure that the use of AI does not harm the public or small businesses.

Vishesh Mistry

Senior AI Scientist, Tech5

Nothing beats human judgment, especially when lives, rights, or reputations are on the line. As AI accelerates, careful oversight is often sidelined. The challenge now is keeping people in the loop while building guardrails fast enough to match the technology’s rapid climb.

Vishesh Mistry, Senior AI Scientist at biometric tech company Tech5, believes that human oversight and government regulation are critical to safe and ethical AI application.

The irreplaceable human: “There has to be a human in the loop somewhere to make these decisions, especially in criminal use cases,” Mistry says. One case in Detroit shows why. A facial recognition system wrongly flagged a Black man as a suspect, leading to a false arrest and a long legal fight to clear his name.

Don't believe the hype: “A lot of people believe that AI will replace everything,” Mistry says, “from the smallest of things to the biggest of things.” But he pushes back on that thinking. While cutting costs may be the goal, he warns that removing people entirely can put companies at legal risk, and cause real harm. “To be legally safe and to not harm the public, businesses need to keep humans in the loop.”

Regulators hit snooze: “The technology is moving on an immense scale,” Mistry says, pointing to the relentless pace of new AI releases. But the safeguards aren’t keeping up. “Governments are really falling behind in terms of rules and regulations to make sure that the use of AI does not harm the public or small businesses,” he warns.

To be legally safe and to not harm the public, businesses need to keep humans in the loop.

Vishesh Mistry

Senior AI Scientist, Tech5

Public > profit: “The biggest focus should be on sheltering the people who make up the economy,” Mistry says. Right now, he argues, AI companies are operating unchecked. “They are on a loose leash. They have all the money, they have all the funding and investors are lining up.”

With little regulation and growing concerns over practices like scraping personal data without consent, Mistry is clear: “The government should be protecting the public.” Support for industry growth can come later—but only once meaningful safeguards are in place.