by brutal cartel turf wars. Now artificial intelligence may be able to help the loved ones of Mexico's legions of disappeared. Two new AI tools are being developed to help in the search for the more than 134,000 people being sought. Rosas' son, Diego, went missing at the age of 16 in the central town of Ecatepec in September 2015 after leaving his home to meet some friends.

The state prosecutor's office said he was kidnapped by a criminal gang but have not established which group, why, or whether Diego is still alive. "It's been 11 years and I still don't know where Diego is. There's no line of investigation leading us to find out what happened to my son," Rosas, 52, told AFP at one of the demonstrations held regularly in Mexico City to demand justice. Cases like Diego's have prompted two universities to develop AI tools they hope will provide answers. Regresa (Return) was developed by Mexico's main public university, UNAM. It uses anthropometry -- human body measurements -- to create an image of how the faces of minors, which remain frozen in time in missing persons posters, may have changed over time. With investigations generally dragging on for years, these updated likenesses are a recurring demand of the families. Countries like the United States, India and China already use facial recognition and age progression software to search for kidnapped children.In Mexico, some prosecutors' offices use the technology but most software relies on open-source photo databases that don't reflect typical Mexican traits. (Bssnews)