Any official narrative frames the expansion of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as an issue of boosting border security, law enforcement, and national sovereignty. But when the rhetoric is stripped away to follow the data — contracts, revenues, bed counts, and capital flows — a starkly different reality comes to light.
This is not simply an immigration system. It is an industrialized detention economy that brings together policy, profit, and procurement. Now more than ever does the lens need to be shifted, and the narrative reformed.
A Dive Into the Detention Economy
Immigration enforcement is proving a highly lucrative, capacity-driven infrastructure industry. The number of people detained in ICE detention centers is at a record high: the final 2025 count hit 68,400 in December. And these figures are set to continue ballooning. Federal spending on immigration centers is expected to reach $38.3 billion, or 92,600 beds. In January of this year alone, almost 40,000 people were booked into ICE detention centers.
These are not just statistics to make up a list. They paint a harrowing picture of the harrowing reality that this is a flourishing, continuously growing system, where profit far outweighs people, prosperity, and security.
At the heart of this system, two companies dominate: GEO Group and CoreCivic, earning $2.6 billion and $2.2 billion in revenue, respectively. That revenue is derived from maximizing bed occupancy. In mathematical terms, the formula is straightforward:
Bed Occupancy x Daily Rate x Time = Revenue
A facility bringing in $126 to $205 per detainee per day and filling up 2,000 beds at that rate can earn up to $180 million in annual revenue. Across the tens of thousands of detainees currently in the system, it’s no surprise that this is a multi-billion-dollar industry, and counting. Keep in mind that these facilities need to consistently hit at least 70 to 80% occupancy to break even.
These are not private prisons. The federal government is the sole customer, where warehouses are being turned into detention centers, and the funds to foot the bill are coming out of the taxpayers’ pockets. In this system, the goal will never be to increase security and reduce the rate of detention. As the numbers clearly show, it needs constant occupancy and is set to keep on growing.
Photo credit: Massimo Di Giovanna, MD Fotos
Technology as the Turning Point
Changing the narrative requires leaning on innovation. As it stands, the current detention-focused system is highly centralized in terms of detection points, meaning it is also highly reactive. There are glaring inefficiencies that exist in this setup, which enable the facility-based system to continue thriving.
Additionally, not enough data points are being used. This is what shapes the narrative defined by fear, alienation, and outright inaccuracy. The full picture isn’t presented, and misinformation manifests in distrust and fearmongering.
Here’s where technology comes into play. A decentralized approach, where detection nodes are distributed along the entirety of the border, provides continuous, much-needed real-time digital visibility that keeps the border secure, the surveillance informed, and the public in the loop. Instead of resorting to violent, inaccurate, reactive measures that hinge on detention centers, the real-time, automated nature of the data exchange allows enforcement to act proactively.
The Border Token™ is designed to build a Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network (DePIN). Comprised of 80 cybersecurity nodes at precise locations along the border, the DePIN model strengthens facilitates secure data exchange and new economic opportunities.
Resilience is distributed and security is far more consistent and, just as importantly, accurate. While the current system produces many points of failure and blind spots, this decentralized model is designed for constant in-the-loop, orchestrated monitoring that provides the full picture of what’s happening — and what could happen — on the border.
Shared and Secure Economic Opportunity, Not Inmate Occupancy
But change doesn’t just occur by plugging in new technology. There needs to be a recalibration of the purpose and incentives guiding the system.
We know that the current detention-based model is defined by revenue, but for the select few who directly profit from constantly filling up the beds at an exponential rate. The decentralized model, however, focuses on reducing friction and stabilizing cross-border movement. That’s where economic opportunity is multiplied, not derailed. In fact, the whole premise is based on the idea of treating the border as a secure setting for economic corridors rather than a barrier to any movement of any kind.
Looking to the Future
Crucially, the value of data is fully realized. The network-scale collaboration means significantly more insight and informed decision-making because the data flows are prioritized and diversified. Interconnected, distributed monitoring in the form of nodes and sensors produce the accurate picture of the numbers moving across the border.
It means that instead of control, collaboration and coordination are the underpinning drivers of the narrative. That creates a fundamental shift in the human dimension of the narrative: proactive monitoring and security enshrines dignity, transparency, and economic inclusion among communities on both sides of the border.
The current state of affairs forces the system to always prioritize filling up facilities to maintain the equilibrium. The decentralization of technology to enhance monitoring and prioritize people’s well-being means the taxpayer isn’t shouldering the cost, but actually has an opportunity to access new economic opportunities.
Article by Eddie Francis Cullen, Founder of Crescite
Featured photo of Eddie Francis Cullen, Photo credit: Massimo Di Giovanna, MD Fotos