Big Data For Big Wars: JEDI vs. China & Russia

Big Data For Big Wars: JEDI vs. China & Russia
Big Data For Big Wars: JEDI vs. China & Russia

Trump’s war with Bezos and Amazon has overshadowed the reason the military wants cloud computing: to share vital data in a fast-paced global conflict.

Genocide Swarms & Assassin Drones: The Case For Banning Lethal AI

Genocide Swarms & Assassin Drones: The Case For Banning Lethal AI
Genocide Swarms & Assassin Drones: The Case For Banning Lethal AI

Don’t fear robots who rebel against their human masters. Fear robots that obey the wrong human.

Why A ‘Human In The Loop’ Can’t Control AI: Richard Danzig

Why A ‘Human In The Loop’ Can’t Control AI: Richard Danzig
Why A ‘Human In The Loop’ Can’t Control AI: Richard Danzig

“Error is as important as malevolence,” Richard Danzig told me in an interview. “I probably wouldn’t use the word ‘stupidity,’ (because) the people who make these mistakes are frequently quite smart, (but) it’s so complex and the technologies are so opaque that there’s a limit to our understanding.”

What Really Mattered In 2017 (Our Top 10 List)

What Really Mattered In 2017 (Our Top 10 List)
What Really Mattered In 2017 (Our Top 10 List)

This is a list of the most important stories and opinion pieces we ran at Breaking Defense in 2017. It’s a bit like our coverage: freewheeling, often unexpected and, hopefully, poking at the spots where policymakers in the US, NATO, Australia, Japan, South Korea and our other treaty allies and partners need to look. We…

Inside The Wargame: The Challenges Facing Air Force’s MDC2

Inside The Wargame: The Challenges Facing Air Force’s MDC2
Inside The Wargame: The Challenges Facing Air Force’s MDC2

SUFFOLK, VA: Inside one of six large rooms in Lockheed Martin’s Lighthouse complex here, flanked by a phalanx of huge TV and other screens, an earnest conversation between a cyber warrior and a “commander” plays out. We’re in the middle of a three-day wargame, one of a series of exercises to help develop the early stages…

‘Rolling The Marble:’ BG Saltzman On Air Force’s Multi-Domain C2 System

‘Rolling The Marble:’ BG Saltzman On Air Force’s Multi-Domain C2 System
‘Rolling The Marble:’ BG Saltzman On Air Force’s Multi-Domain C2 System

PENTAGON: In his first interview, the man overseeing the Air Force’s attempt to build the first truly global command and control system says it will demand major changes to the US military. Multi-Domain Command & Control will demand changes to how America commands its troops around the world, to acquisition, to Air Force culture and…

VCJCS Selva Says US Must Not Let Robots Decide Who Dies; Supports LRSO

VCJCS Selva Says US Must Not Let Robots Decide Who Dies; Supports LRSO
VCJCS Selva Says US Must Not Let Robots Decide Who Dies; Supports LRSO

WASHINGTON: Admitting there’s a “raucous debate” in the US military about whether humans should allow robots to decide when to pull the trigger, the nation’s Nr. 2 uniformed officer told the Senate today that he doesn’t “think it’s reasonable to put robots in charge of whether we take a human life.” Gen. Paul Selva, the…

Pentagon Studies Weapons That Can Read Users’ Mind

Pentagon Studies Weapons That Can Read Users’ Mind
Pentagon Studies Weapons That Can Read Users’ Mind

NEWSEUM: The troops of tomorrow may be able to pull the trigger using only their minds. As artificially intelligent drones, hacking, jamming, and missiles accelerate the pace of combat, some of the military’s leading scientists are studying how mere humans can keep up with the incredible speed of cyber warfare, missiles and other threats. One…

Artificial Intelligence Will Help Hunt Daesh By December

Artificial Intelligence Will Help Hunt Daesh By December
Artificial Intelligence Will Help Hunt Daesh By December

THE NEWSEUM: Artificial intelligence is coming soon to a battlefield near you — with plenty of help from the private sector. Within six months the US military will start using commercial AI algorithms to sort through its masses of intelligence data on the Islamic State. “We will put an algorithm into a combat zone before…

Info Ops Officer Offers Artificial Intelligence Roadmap

Info Ops Officer Offers Artificial Intelligence Roadmap
Info Ops Officer Offers Artificial Intelligence Roadmap

Artificial intelligence, machine learning and autonomy are central to the future of American war. In particular, the Pentagon wants to develop software that can absorb more information from more sources than a human can, analyze it and either advise the human how to respond or — in high-speed situations like cyber warfare and missile defense — act on…

Should Pentagon Let Robots Kill Humans? Maybe

Should Pentagon Let Robots Kill Humans? Maybe
Should Pentagon Let Robots Kill Humans? Maybe

Imagine battles unfolding faster than the human mind can handle, with artificial intelligences choosing their tactics and targets largely on their own. The former four-star commander in Afghanistan, John Allen, and an artificial intelligence entrepreneur, Amir Husain, have teamed up to develop a concept for what they call “hyperwar,” rolled out in the July issue…

Artificial Stupidity: Learning To Trust Artificial Intelligence (Sometimes)

Artificial Stupidity: Learning To Trust Artificial Intelligence (Sometimes)
Artificial Stupidity: Learning To Trust Artificial Intelligence (Sometimes)

In science fiction and real life alike, there are plenty of horror stories where humans trust artificial intelligence too much. They range from letting the fictional SkyNet control our nuclear weapons to letting Patriots shoot down friendly planes or letting Tesla Autopilot crash into a truck. At the same time, though, there’s also a danger…

Artificial Stupidity: Fumbling The Handoff From AI To Human Control

Artificial Stupidity: Fumbling The Handoff From AI To Human Control
Artificial Stupidity: Fumbling The Handoff From AI To Human Control

Science fiction taught us to fear smart machines we can’t control. But reality should teach us to fear smart machines that need us to take control when we’re not ready. From Patriot missiles to Tesla cars to Airbus jets, automated systems have killed human beings, not out of malice, but because the humans operating them…

Artificial Stupidity: When Artificial Intelligence + Human = Disaster

APPLIED PHYSICS LABORATORY: Futurists worry about artificial intelligence becoming too intelligent for humanity’s good. Here and now, however, artificial intelligence can be dangerously dumb. When complacent humans become over-reliant on dumb AI, people can die. The lethal track record goes from the Tesla Autopilot crash last year, to the Air France 447 disaster that killed 228…