Those AI systems will happen either way. Take the EZ-Pass example. It wouldn't surprise me if they want to use facial recognition to cross reference the driver with the plates on the car to find a kidnapper.
I understand that this stuff could be used for.. evil .. but acting like they can be stopped from being developed is like saying no country should make nukes. We still make nukes.. and this tech. The only ones who don't do it are the ones who fall behind.
You can slow it down maybe but you can't stop it.
People say the same thing about AI like chatgpt: we should slow it down or pause it till yadayada. Anyone who 'pauses' is just hiding results longer.
Honestly living in a world with great facial recognition could have benefits. Would be cool to be able to shop without needing my wallet or phone and have it charged to me automatically based off my face. My Google Photos has facial recognition and I think it's a great feature.. I wish it worked even better.