# 162. Matching “Unmatchable” Fingerprints

- Show: [The Next Byte Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast)
- Published: 2024-02-20
- Length: 21m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2024-02-20-162-matching-unmatchable-fingerprints
- Listen: https://the-next-byte-wevolver.simplecast.com/episodes/162-matching-unmatchable-fingerprints-McTpv54w

## Summary

Hosts Daniel and Forbode discuss research by Columbia University undergraduate Gabe Guo, who used AI to challenge the long-standing forensic assumption that fingerprints from different fingers of the same person are unique. Guo utilized a contrastive learning model on a public NIST database of 60,000 fingerprints to identify similarities in the central 'singularity' patterns (angles and curvatures) rather than traditional edge minutiae, achieving up to 88% accuracy in linking intra-person fingerprints. The team faced initial rejection from a forensics journal due to the paradigm-shifting nature of the findings but eventually published their work after persistent effort.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2024-02-20-162-matching-unmatchable-fingerprints#t=0) Introduction and Sponsor Read
- [3:27](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2024-02-20-162-matching-unmatchable-fingerprints#t=207) The Flawed Assumption of Fingerprint Uniqueness
- [7:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2024-02-20-162-matching-unmatchable-fingerprints#t=420) Gabe Guo's AI Approach and Model Training
- [10:26](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2024-02-20-162-matching-unmatchable-fingerprints#t=626) Journal Rejection and Paradigm Shift
- [12:30](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2024-02-20-162-matching-unmatchable-fingerprints#t=750) Discovering the Singularity Pattern
- [15:52](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2024-02-20-162-matching-unmatchable-fingerprints#t=952) Impact on Forensics and Cold Cases

## Topics

- [AI & machine learning](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/ai-and-machine-learning)
- [Debugging & failure analysis](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/debugging-and-failure-analysis)
- [Careers & education](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/engineering-careers-and-education)

## Most relevant to

makers and hobbyists

## Mentioned

- Mouser Electronics (company)
- Columbia University (company)
- University at Buffalo (company)
- NIST (company)
- NCIS (other)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2024-02-20-162-matching-unmatchable-fingerprints. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to The Next Byte Podcast.