Amid the hum of the convention center, recorded gunshots rang out, accompanied by realistic screams from staged events like kidnappings, church shootings, and urban riots - scenarios drawn straight from recent news. These sounds cut through the routine chatter of the trade show, showcasing the V-300 S-Screen Simulator by VirTra, one of 193 exhibitors at the Border Security Expo in Phoenix, Arizona.

For over ten years, this event has drawn vendors and officials together, where companies pitch cameras and sensors as the ultimate solution to securing the border. Protesters gathered outside that day, and speakers such as border czar Tom Homan criticized media bias. Inside, however, the atmosphere was upbeat, marking a triumph for Department of Homeland Security staff and their industry partners.

Border Czar Tom Homan gives the keynote at the Border Security Expo opening in Phoenix, Arizona, on Tuesday, May 5, 2026.

The connections seemed overly cozy at times. Homan reportedly took $50,000 in bribes from FBI undercover agents posing as executives seeking contracts, but the probe ended after Trump's return, dismissed as a deep state plot by a Justice Department official. Homan decried congressional labels like 'Nazis' for ICE and Border Patrol. The expo focused on achievements: historic lows in crossings and highs in interior detentions. Trump, hailed by Homan as the finest president ever, empowered these agencies, benefiting contractors under a tough enforcement stance.

On the last day, I chatted with a former long-time Border Patrol agent, now selling AI software to his old agency. The floor buzzed with ex-military types in polos, mingling with officials. Carla Provost, ex-Border Patrol chief from Trump's first term, played the welcoming host. DHS led spending, but local police and sheriffs - expanding 287(g) ties with ICE post-Trump - browsed too. Vendors eyed gains from Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act funding. Yet, with success so evident, was the industry facing saturation?

Vignettes from the Border Security Expo.

'We own the border now,' declared Customs and Border Protection commissioner Rodney Scott on opening day. Speakers touted the safest southwest border ever. When crossings surged daily under prior policies, tech seemed essential. Now, with just 8,268 apprehensions in March versus 137,473 two years prior, policy shifts - not gadgets - drove the decline. Biden-era crossers sought asylum on U.S. soil; Trump curtailed it, a policy a court recently ruled unlawful, slashing numbers.

'We're nearly omniscient on crossings,' said Tucson Sector chief patrol agent John Morris. 'In 30 years, I never imagined this - just needed leadership to say go.'

So why the expo? If existing desert cameras, sensors, and drones sufficed, what justified more?

With the border sealed, Scott emphasized interior security. Each border stop yields quick intel to ICE for distant arrests. 'We follow up in homes far from the border,' he noted, leveraging migrant networks. 'We're supercharging it for the deportations promised - securing the border and delivering for America.'

Immigration hawks long claimed every state borders peril. Under Trump, it's literal. The homeland guards against foreigners everywhere, plus unrest from ICE raids, countered by protester surveillance. Vendors dismissed fears of reduced border tech demand amid interior focus. 'Demand persists,' said one offering electro-optical gear to DHS. Like TSA's endless scanner upgrades despite critiques, funding flows. Another quipped, 'That's government contracting.'

The floor displayed enforcement gear: Anduril cameras, giant-tired trucks, drones, counter-drones, and a misplaced orange sphere - Cochrane USA's Rio Grande floating barrier, nudging crossers to ports. Yet paired with Texas Rangers, it linked to 2023 drownings, bodies snagged on buoys. Since the 1990s, 'prevention through deterrence' tech has fueled migrant fatalities.

This tech has migrated inland. After touring, I saw the real threats were invisible. Desert gear hides somewhat, but Scott shifted to nationwide tracking needing stealthier methods.

Enter Babel Street. Their booth was sparse - just staff packing up, no flashy demos. That's the genius: unseen tools excel. They vaguely mentioned software and analytics. CBP docs reveal more: Babel X scans 52+ social platforms, URLs, deep web in 200+ languages, mapping networks from one handle.

CBP contracted Babel Street since 2015 per Brennan Center, building intelligence databases on hidden links. It sells location data, dodging warrants via app code, per ACLU 2022 findings. Amnesty flagged use against pro-Palestine protesters. DHS spent over $21 million since 2015 on them.

Trump's team might eye citizens too. Acting AG Todd Blanche, expo speaker, boasted denaturalization surges past Biden's four-year total in a week. DOJ targets naturalized citizens in 39 offices, with DHS referrals at 200 monthly. For Blanche, it's border integrity.