The same technology used in self-driving cars is being touted as a potential high-tech solution to the US border wall conundrum -- with some added benefits.

At least one startup at the Consumer Electronics show is showcasing how Lidar, a laser-based detection system widely used in autonomous vehicles, could be deployed along the US-Mexico border at a far lower cost than a physical wall or fence, and with fewer environmental impacts.

Quanergy Systems, among a handful of tech firms working on Lidar border security, is showing to CES attendees its technology being deployed in pilot projects on the India-Pakistan frontier as well as a small section of the southern US border.

"We offer a solution that is more capable than a physical wall," said Louay Eldada, chief executive and co-founder of the Silicon Valley startup.

"It can see day and night in any weather and can automatically track intruders, and give the GPS coordinates in real time to patrol officers."

Eldada said such a system would cost "about two to three percent" of the price of a physical barrier for the entire US-Mexico border.

An electronic solution offers additional benefits, according to Quanergy, including for the environment and in operating costs.

"A barrier is an eyesore and it intrudes on the environment, it impedes the flow of wildlife" Eldada told AFP.

And without a wall in place, "you don't have to have patrol officers driving back and forth, so you need fewer people" to monitor the border.

A decade ago, the US government canceled plans for an electronic fence, amid concerns it would be ineffective.

But Eldada said that technology has vastly improved in recent years, notably with the development of Lidar -- light detection and ranging technology -- paired with artificial intelligence.

"With the long range of Lidar, you detect things before they get to the perimeter, and the AI software is so much more advanced," he said.

"We can get very high resolution images, and look at someone's behavior. You can see every articulation. This allows you to see how each person is moving and have a good idea of whether it's a patrol officer or someone about to cross illegally."

How the US military could build Trump's border wall
Washington (AFP) Jan 8, 2019 - President Donald Trump is giving a prime-time address Tuesday, when he will discuss what he calls a "humanitarian and national security crisis" on the US-Mexico border and argue for the construction of a wall.

Trump has said he could declare a "national emergency" that would free up Department of Defense funds for a border barrier.

Here is a look at how the US military could help build Trump's wall.

- How much? -

If Trump declares a national emergency, he would be able to draw on Pentagon construction funds that have already been approved by Congress for 2019.

Currently, that amounts to about $10.5 billion -- but most of that money is already ear-marked for military housing, base improvements and various other projects.

Pentagon officials were scrambling Tuesday to figure out how much cash they have in "unobligated" construction funds that could be easily diverted to a wall mission.

The Defense Department could also scrap or scale-back planned projects, though such a move would spark the ire of US lawmakers who lobbied for the projects and whose districts would be impacted.

As a candidate, Trump repeatedly vowed that Mexico would pay for a wall.

- Who would build it? -

The Pentagon already has about 2,350 active-duty troops stationed along the border, deployed under a controversial order Trump gave last year ahead of midterm elections.

Additionally, about 2,200 National Guardsmen are supporting border operations.

The troops' role has primarily been to erect miles of concertina-wire fencing along popular crossing points, though the soldiers are not necessarily experts at building more permanent walls.

Such a task could fall into the hands of the Army Corps of Engineers, which has decades of experience working large-scale projects.

The Pentagon could flow additional troops to the border to help, or the work could be farmed out to private contractors.

- Under what authority -

The National Emergencies Act allows the president to declare a national emergency, providing a specific reason for it.

That then allows the mobilization of hundreds of dormant emergency powers under other laws, and gives access to Pentagon construction funds.

National emergency powers can permit the White House to declare martial law, suspend civil liberties, expand the military, seize property and restrict trade, communications and financial transactions.

- Legal challenges -

Any national emergency declaration is sure to be challenged in the courts and by Democratic lawmakers.

Expect lawsuits from landowners on the border at risk of having their property seized by the government, and from environmental organizations furious that Trump wants to build a wall across environmentally sensitive areas.

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