Kindred Tech and MongoDB bring open source AI to India’s child exploitation investigations
India is witnessing a sharp surge in online child exploitation, with 2.2 million cybertips received by Indian agencies in 2024, according to the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). The growing volume and complexity of digital evidence are pushing law enforcement agencies to adopt faster, more interoperable investigation tools.
Addressing this challenge, Kindred Tech, a nonprofit organisation, has developed Katalyst, an AI-driven digital investigation platform designed to combat online child exploitation, human trafficking, and other forms of technology-enabled abuse. Built on open, AI-ready technology principles, Katalyst automates the ingestion, prioritisation, and analysis of cybertips, reducing reliance on slow, manual review processes that can average 35 pages per report.
Katalyst combines advanced case management, a secure media library, AI-driven categorisation of sensitive media, and automated computer forensic support to streamline investigations and enable coordinated, cross-jurisdictional responses. Its architecture is built on MongoDB Atlas, allowing processing of structured and unstructured data at scale, storing AI inferences alongside raw case data, and supporting vector-based similarity searches for victim identification. Offline-ready capabilities ensure field usability in low-connectivity environments.
The platform’s impact is already visible. In 2024, Kerala Police’s Counter Child Sexual Exploitation Centre (CCSE) completed an 18-month pilot using Katalyst, resulting in 96 arrests, safeguarding 20 children, and issuing 18 international referrals, earning the Technology Sabha Excellence Award 2023.
“At Kindred Tech, our mission is to empower investigators and law enforcement agencies with tools that surface insights faster and ensure every child’s case receives the urgent attention it requires,” said Bree Atkinson, CEO, Kindred Tech.
Kindred Tech plans to expand Katalyst across additional Indian states, integrating advanced vector search and predictive analytics to support real-time, cross-border investigations.
