“an area open to public use, where no reasonable expectation of privacy exists”

becomes:

“an area open to public use, where reasonable expectation of no privacy exists”

Not suggesting this is okay, but the 1,300 "AI Cameras" are placed in "classroom buildings, bookstores, dining areas, parking structures, gyms and the residence halls".

Reading the title suggested to me that the cameras were installed even in the doom rooms, but this isn't the case. The article reads a bit strange "and the residence halls where students sleep." but the students don't sleep in the hall, they sleep in rooms adjacent to the hall.

Sounds like security cameras.

I'll bet they installed smoke detectors and emergency lighting and all sorts of other things without telling students either.

The whole expectation of privacy argument is so obtuse.

If I find you in public and start staring at you and following you everywhere without ever going away, including camping out at the door of every private space you enter and exit. You will absolutely have a problem with it. We even have a word for it and laws about it.

The fact that the barista saw you at the coffee shop and your roomate saw you at the library and the book store has an ordinary security camera are nothing remotely equivelant.

One is stalking, even harassment, and the others are not.

SDSU stands for San Diego State University

The cheapest DIY drone that is able to effectively carry and use a glass breaker is like 25 bucks in material.

Why would anyone carry a palm-size non-traceable drone with a glass breaker on campus you might ask. Are they going to break the cameras? Of course not, that’s highly illegal.

Students care deeply about the wellbeing of fellow students and professors, just like the University seems to care so much that they installed AI cameras for 1.3 mil USD. Safety first.

What if one of your fellow students crashes their car on campus and needs to be rescued in style? Evaluate explosion risk, decide to break glass with the drone from a safe distance, then quickly move in to cut the seat belt and extract the crashed driver.

Drones are cool tech, students at SDSU should experiment with them way more and establish their presence on campus. Maybe even make a nationwide university sport out of it. National Drone Rescue Championships anyone?