The US immigration system is undergoing a tech-driven transformation, with unprecedented levels of surveillance spending being funnelled into AI-powered tracking capabilities, according to a recent report that has raised alarm bells across the Atlantic. As one of the world's leading economic powers, Britain has significant trade and travel links with the US, making this issue of particular relevance to British readers.
The analysis, released this week by immigration rights organisation Mijente, legal advocates Just Futures Law, and research group Surveillance Resistance Lab, details how contracts awarded to technology firms providing high-tech surveillance tools have escalated dramatically, particularly during Donald Trump's second term in office. The report examined contracts between US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) and 11 companies supplying surveillance technology.
Researchers found that the money allocated to these firms more than doubled from 2024 to 2025, reaching over $310 million, before soaring to a record $513 million in 2026. This marks a significant increase from 2013, when such contracts were under $50 million.
A key driver behind this recent surge in expenditure is substantial new contracts with Palantir, a data analytics company integral to ICE's enforcement operations, and Anduril, a defence firm known for its AI-powered surveillance systems, border towers, drones, and sensors. The comprehensive analysis underscores how a large influx of funding has positioned ICE as the best-funded law enforcement agency in the US, significantly bolstering its surveillance ambitions.
The report highlights that these taxpayer funds are being directed towards multi-million dollar federal contracts for a diverse array of tools and services. These include data brokers, sophisticated analytics software, social media scraping tools, facial recognition technologies, hacking devices and spyware designed to infiltrate mobile phones, and the engagement of external contractors described by the study's authors as 'bounty hunters'. The arsenal also features 'autonomous' border towers and advanced drone technology.
Furthermore, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees both ICE and CBP, is not merely acquiring surveillance products. The report details how the DHS operates a billion-dollar incubator and actively funds research, programmes, and partnerships that play a crucial role in shaping the development of new technologies. These initiatives, such as the Silicon Valley Innovation Partnership and the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) programme, provide early funding to technology-focused startups, helping them become commercially viable and, in many cases, major surveillance technology providers.
Since 2004, the SBIR programme alone has provided $845 million to 500 companies, with recent awards under the Trump administration supporting tools for biometric data harvesting from mobile phones and AI analysis of airport CCTV feeds. One of the report's authors, Paromita Shah, executive director of Just Futures Law, expressed significant concern regarding this new influx of money.