Over the last few decades, many countries invested a significant portion of their budget to improve their Military. This comes as an aftermath of World War II, where countries thrived to show their dominance over other weak countries. The end of World War II increased the amount of research into weapons which improved the technological aspect of using weapons. One of the most important aspect of a technologically advanced weaponry is the use of artificial intelligence in warfare. If the amount of use of machinery in warfare increased and at the same time, the number of personnel decreased, it would be tremendously beneficial to the country.
With increase in the technological field, Artificial Intelligence is growing at a rapid rate. United States and many other nations are investing vast sums of money into the research which has multiple military functions. Some of the functions the research is being focused are intelligence, analysis, logistics, cyber operations, control and so on including autonomous vehicles in warzones. According to Congressional Research Service, Artificial Intelligence and National Security, United States has already implemented Artificial Intelligent technology in some of the military operations which were held in Iraq and Syria. However, AI technology has its own challenges. One of the major challenges is that the development of AI is majorly happening in the private/commercial industry. Acquisition of such technology into the military which is a governmental agency requires a lot of screening and modifications. Some commercial companies might not incorporate with Department of Defense due to ethical reasons but more importantly the risks carried into incorporating AI into the weapons. (Hoadley & Sayler, 2020)
Discussion
As Artificial Intelligence is becoming a major part in modern warfare, there are various aspects that should be focused. The capability of AI in simple and complicated functions are performed with pinpoint accuracy. The ability to handle a vast amount of data eases into various operations. The need for AI in military is better understood by analyzing the different aspects of AI inclusion in military.
Logistics
Logistics play an important role in military. Seamlessly transporting a large quantity of material such as ammunition, arms, gear, food supplies and so on to various departments is a compulsion. Having an integrated artificial system could not only reduce the transportation costs but also decrease the human effort. Artificial Intelligence also assists in detecting any irregularities in the workflow of any logistics and also helps in identifying component failures. According to the article, “Artificial Intelligence for Military Logistics – Current Applications”, author Millicent Abadicio states that US Department of Defense is actively developing AI in the areas of logistics including Cloud Services, Supply Chain Management, Medical Air, Preventive Maintenance and Driverless Resupply. (Abadicio, 2019)
Warfare
Extensive research is performed in trying to embed artificial intelligence in weapons which are used on land, in water and air. This allows for efficient warfare which utilize fewer human inputs and more technical inputs. It decreases the human error from the equation allowing enhanced performance. However, the huge setback to using AI powered weaponry in warfare could lead to unfavorable outcomes. According to article, “Artificial Intelligence is the Future of Warfare (Just not in the way you think)”, author Paul Maxwell describes AI in today’s world is powered to perform mundane tasks only. Multiple tasks related to different aspects of the warfare, including understanding language, especially sarcasm could add to the burden of controlling AI powered machinery. (Maxwell, 2020)
Battlefield Healthcare
Another aspect of military is the issues pertaining to the battlefield where, military personnel sometimes require immediate healthcare. In such scenarios, a human medical team to attend to the wounded might be delayed. Nichole Heydenburg, author of article, “How AI can help in battlefield healthcare” states that, “Rescuing wounded soldiers during active battlefield situations is one of the most dangerous positions and the cause of many military deaths”. One of the intense advanced research is being conducted in the field of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs). These vehicles are being programmed to travel to the location where there is a need of medical assistance and provide emergency medicines to the wounded battlefield personnel. (Heydenburg, 2019)
Combat Simulation
US military has been using virtual reality to train military personnel in the areas of combat. This VR technology enable military to allow combat training which simulates realistic combat zones. Inclusion of AI into this technology permits further advantages. According to Entrust Solutions’ article, “Military Training Simulation Software: Artificial Intelligence for Armed Servicemembers”, there are four major advantages of developing military training simulation software with artificial intelligence.
- It creates realistic settings: With the help of AI, military personnel can train in realistic combat zones. AI can replicate a realistic view of a forest thousands of miles away which can be extremely useful in training.
- It saves time and money: Developing artificial intelligence initially can be tremendously expensive but in the long run the AI can save significant amount.
- It replicated the variables of combat: Environments such as dense forests, concrete jungles, deserts and many more can be created exactly as it is by the use of artificial intelligence.
- It teaches new strategies: Warfare has many strategies that are implemented by higher officials. Implementing AI could allow military servicemembers to explore newer strategies with higher possibility of success. (Entrust Solutions, 2020)
Threat Monitoring
One of the important aspects of military is to conduct covert operations to obtain information and intelligence about the enemy. Using AI to conduct these operations decrease the chance of human interaction. In addition, AI equipped machinery can be used to send on remote operations or even on pre-defined route to analyze any enemy movement.
Drones: Unmanned aerial vehicles also called as drones are used in military operation to patrol the enemy territory to identify any potential targets. These drones can also be equipped with weapons to compromise certain targets. This increases the safety of military bases as well as military personnel.
Financial Aspect
It is evident that, to develop high-level artificial intelligence and to integrate that developed and trusted AI into military require a large sum of financial expenditure. To ensure that the US military is still dominant compared to other nations, the allocation of money into various department should be adequate. According to “The Networking & Information Technology Research & Development Program”, a detailed report of the budgeting of funds to develop AI are published. However, allocation of finances to certain departments such as Department of Defence (DoD) and Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) are not publicly made available. In table-1 we can see the detailed budgeting to various agencies. (National Science & Technology Council, 2019)
The US government has initiated a long-term federal investment in AI R&D to create new and powerful AI. The investment of funds is not just to develop the software for artificial intelligence but also in the initial steps of data acquiring, data handling and processing it. This promotes a safe and effective human and AI interaction. This allows for research to be done in areas pertaining to ethical, legal and social objectives. Furthermore, the investment of funds is to grow the AI workforce and to expand the public private partnership. This allows the US as a nation as well as the US military to lead the automation industry. (National Science & Technology Council, 2019)
Positives and Negatives of Artificial Intelligence
Benefits
In the article, “Artificial Intelligence is a Work in Progress, Official Says”, author David Vergun discusses the importance of AI in military. Though, artificial intelligence is a work in progress, we need to ensure that using AI should be beneficial and safe. The development of AI technology should be thorough to the level where machines can interact with humans and be productive.
As mentioned above, various other benefits such as drone patrolling, combat simulation, threat monitoring and so on the involvement of human personnel in a warfare could be reduced significantly. Right from handling the vast logistics of military to the patrolling of drones, AI would be helpful in performing different aspects of military.
Criticism
Though there are many benefits of AI, one major concern is regarding the ethical reasoning of these machines. According to Alex Gatapoulos, the dangers of these “imagined AI systems” is that they might run amuck and create unnecessary complications to the well establish society. Additionally, Gatapoulos states that, “Conflicts in cities can overwhelm most human beings and it is highly doubtful a machine with a very narrow view of the world would be able to navigate it, let alone fight and prevail without making serious errors of judgement.” (Gatopoulos, 2021). These errors of judgement could be lethal to non-military population of a city.
Recommendation
AI has been in the high-level classified military since 1940 but the technology used is vastly different. Through years of research and development, the AI grew to a level where it could perform complicated tasks, especially Natural Language Processing (NLP). Implementing this technology in military could be very beneficial for the nation but there is still a lot of research to be done. As countries try to shoot ahead with the latest developments, certain concerns about legal and ethical boundaries should not be tampered with. Further research should be done considering the implications of AI in military especially in ethical grounds.
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