- The SEC is acquiring AI-powered surveillance agents from CIA-affiliated firm Babel Street for monitoring cellphone locations, social media, and credit headers.
- The software renewal contract includes two licenses for cellphone location-tracking platform Locate X Premium, ten for Babel Street Insights platform, and rights for 12,000 Identity API calls.
- Babel Street's AI agents can conduct complex threat investigations independently and bypass safety filters of general-purpose consumer AI models.
- The SEC's use of cellphone location data raises concerns about investigators' own movements being surveilled.
- Babel Street has extensive ties to former high-level CIA executives, including Patrick Butler and Maura Burns.