Robot police officer goes on duty in Dubai

Dubai Police have revealed their first robot officer, giving it the task of patrolling the city's malls and tourist attractions. People will be able to use it to report crimes, pay fines and get information by tapping a touchscreen on its chest.

The government said the aim was for 25% of the force to be robotic by 2030 but they would not replace humans.

"We are not going to replace our police officers with this tool," said Brig Khalid Al Razooqi, director general of smart services at Dubai Police.

"But with the number of people in Dubai increasing, we want to relocate police officers so they work in the right areas and can concentrate on providing a safe city.

"It can protect people from crime because it can broadcast what is happening right away to our command and control centre."

The robot, a customised Reem model from Pal Robotics, was unveiled at the Gulf Information and Security Expo and Conference on Sunday.

At present it can communicate only in Arabic and English, but there are plans to add Russian, Chinese, French and Spanish to its repertoire.