They're Putting AI Cameras In School Busses

April 3, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

Kent Myrtle, a 23-year-old school bus driver in Wichita, Kansas, spoke out against AI-powered cameras being installed on buses operated by First Student for Wichita Public Schools USD 259. During a mandatory safety meeting, he raised privacy concerns for students and drivers but was asked to leave the room by management. His story highlights how surveillance tech from Samsara is quietly transforming school buses into data-collection vehicles, often without input from workers or parents.

Samsara's AI Camera System

Samsara, a company serving trucking, delivery, and now school buses, equips vehicles with dual-facing cameras mounted on the rearview mirror—one inward toward the driver and passengers, one outward for road monitoring. AI analyzes footage in real time, flagging driver issues like drowsiness, inattention, or hands off the wheel, and road incidents. Clips are uploaded to remote servers for instant manager access, aiding liability determinations in accidents.

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What you'll learn

1 (00:00) **Intro to AI Bus Cameras** - Host introduces invasive AI surveillance on school buses and guest Kent Myrtle, Wichita bus driver raising alarms
2 (01:04) **Guest Background and Bus Memories** - Kent shares career start; both reminisce on camera-free school bus era as social safe space
3 (03:12) **Discovery of AI Rollout** - Kent learns via driver gossip, then mandatory safety meeting PowerPoint after installs
4 (04:23) **Samsara System Explained** - Inward/outward cameras on mirror flag driver issues, road incidents via AI alerts
5 (05:36) **Driver Surveillance Concerns** - AI monitors drowsiness, hands-off wheel, distractions like nose-blowing or kid chats
6 (07:01) **Student Privacy Risks** - Kids captured, footage to out-of-state servers; AI repurposed for threat detection
7 (08:33) **Data Partners and Insights** - Kent's research reveals Amazon Web Services, Camera ID facial recognition ties

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Show Notes

AI Surveillance is taking over our schools. Support my independent journalism:🙏 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/taylorlorenz 🗞️ Buy a paid subscription to my Substack: https://www.usermag.co Kent Myrtle, a Wichita bus driver, has been blowing the whistle on AI-powered cameras being installed on school buses. From Wichita to Massachusetts, school districts are partnering with companies like Samsara and BusPatrol to implement "real-time monitoring" and "hazard detection."

But is this actually about safety, or is it a massive privacy violation? We discuss how this footage is being sent to the Amazon Web Services cloud without parental consent. We also look at the "safety" claims, like AI systems mistaking bags of chips for weapons, and how these buses are being turned into roving surveillance machines for law enforcement.