大象传媒

Niall harnesses the latest state of the art technology to keep the border area virtual, frictionless and seamless. It’s his responsibility to oversee the unseeable and monitor something that is everywhere and nowhere.

Niall’s unit achieves this via CCTV footage, social media monitoring, facial and number-plate recognition and even capturing animal sounds. Niall’s machines are sensitive enough to hear a hoot from an owl and determine whether it’s from Fermanagh or Monaghan.

The system isn’t yet so sophisticated it can work on fish, but watch this space. The technology has experienced a few teething troubles - face-paint, make-up and freckles can deceive the cameras and personalised numberplates can bamboozle the system. Niall sees himself as a pioneer and a groundbreaker.

He may have friends in Silicon Valley who are making millions but he feels he is making a difference. As he says himself, 'not all heroes wear capes'. Niall enjoys the celebrity that comes with the territory, even being interviewed by Chris Buckler for the 大象传媒 News. And his pet project is building a robotic border patroller- 'you can’t compromise a robot'.