A “quiet crisis” is emerging at the U.S.-Canada border, as one expert proposes an unconventional solution to fight human smuggling: leveraging advanced technologies like artificial intelligence.

While national attention is largely fixed on the southern border, an increasingly concerning situation is unfolding along the country’s northern border, said Jon Brewton, the founder and CEO of Data2 and a U.S. Air Force Veteran.

“U.S. Customs and Border Patrol has seen a fairly alarming increase in illegal crossings, drug trafficking, and even encountering individuals on the terrorist watch list,” he told Fox News Digital. “And as difficult as securing the southern border has been, the northern border is twice as long.”

While the vast majority of illegal crossings happen at the southern border, officials have been warning for years that the northern line has seen an increase. 

Brewton emphasized that citizens should have both strong safety measures and strong protection of their rights.

“Well-designed AI delivers enhanced protections for Americans and our communities while maintaining the transparency and accountability that our citizens, and quite frankly, our government, require,” he said. “So if we’re smart about what we do, we can make really, really impactful changes to what we’re doing on the northern border and the southern border.”

Canada’s role in border security 

The Trump administration has pressured Canada to enhance its border security to stop the upward trend of the flow of migrants and fentanyl by implementing 25% tariffs on imports from Canada. Energy resources from Canada will have a lower 10% tariff.

“I know that the president’s agenda has really been to try to understand how we can work with Canada and seek concessions from our neighbors to the north to help secure the border in both directions,” he said. “The government really needs to use all of its tools at its disposal.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for comment. 

Fox News Digital’s Michael Lee contributed to this report.