South Yorkshire Police Turns to AI Chatbot Bobbi to Ease Pressure on 101 Line
South Yorkshire Police has launched an AI-powered assistant on its website in an effort to ease demand on its non-emergency 101 line, the force said Thursday.
The chatbot, named Bobbi, is designed to offer advice and answers to common non-emergency queries. Police stressed that it cannot be used to report a crime and is not an alternative to the 999 emergency number.
Bobbi is already in use by several other forces, including Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary, Thames Valley Police and Humberside Police. South Yorkshire Police said its version is built on information supplied by the force rather than by scanning the wider internet, a distinction intended to keep responses reliable and locally relevant.
Ch Supt Cherie Buttle said: “Bobbi will be a useful tool to help reduce calls to 101, save members of the public time, and provide concise and reliable answers to frequently asked questions.”
She added: “We receive more than 1,000 101 calls each day and we know that some callers can be waiting 20 minutes or more to speak to our staff during periods of high demand.
“By providing quick responses to non-emergency questions, Bobbi will enable those who prefer to use the AI assistant to save time otherwise spent calling 101 and enable those who do need to speak to one of our call handlers to get through quicker.”
Buttle also acknowledged public unease about artificial intelligence, saying: “I also recognise some people will have concerns around the use of AI, and I want to emphasise that Bobbi is a secure system. It is an alternative to, not a replacement, for some 101 calls.”
The launch follows the force’s introduction in August of an AI-assisted call handling system for the 101 number. That system was intended to cut waiting times by identifying and filtering out misdirected, nuisance and prank calls before they reached staff.
For the force, the appeal is straightforward: non-emergency lines are often stretched, and routine questions can consume time that could be spent on calls requiring human judgment. If Bobbi diverts even a portion of those queries, officials hope it will reduce queues and allow call handlers to focus on more complex or urgent matters.
The wider adoption of AI in policing, however, is likely to remain closely watched. Forces are under pressure to improve service while managing public trust, data security and the needs of people who may not want to—or cannot—use a chatbot. South Yorkshire Police said Bobbi is secure and optional, describing it as another route to information rather than a replacement for human contact.
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Related coverage: Force uses AI to cut wait times on 101 calls; Force launches chatbot for non-emergency calls.
South Yorkshire Police