US military study ethical principles of the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in armaments. According to experts, these methods should be responsible, proportionate, understandable, reliable and manageable.
As a rule, all fears are based on the assumption that weapons built with the use of artificial intelligence may get out of human control and jeopardize the existence of civilization. Nevertheless, it is believed that the adoption of AI into army service can ensure victory in the wars of the future. That is why the main rivals - the USA, Russia and China - are engaged in the development of combat terminator robots, various intelligent platforms and arms systems.
US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper once said:
"The United States, together with our allies and partners, must accelerate the adoption of AI and lead in its national security applications to maintain our strategic position, prevail on future battlefields, and safeguard the rules-based international order,"
This is exactly what other countries have been talking about recently too - AI should always be under the full control of man.
Back in 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin explained:
"Today in the military, as elsewhere, we see an emphasis being put on the introduction of artificial intelligence and robotics. Our specialists should give priority to these areas."
Nikolai Patrushev, the Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, called on the world community to "develop mechanisms for regulating the development of modern technologies, including artificial intelligence" due to the threat of mass destruction.
Federica Mogherini, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, stated that the world was entering the era, in which drones can independently search for a target and kill without human intervention. Artificial intelligence can make decisions about life and death without direct control from humans, she said.
The Americans became preoccupied with the ethics of AI after the reports about US aerial vehicles attacking and killing civilians in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. It remains unknown whether it was IA or a real person, who made the decision to carry out those attacks. This year, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) demonstrated a test of the capabilities of the neural network in aerial combat.
It was noted that employees of the Georgia Institute of Technology and representatives of seven companies took part in the test:
The research is in full swing ...
In Russia, however, the topic of AI arms systems receives a new development. Yuri Slyusar, the head of the United Aircraft Corporation, said, for example, that the fifth-generation Su-57 fighter, which was created in the Russian Federation, could be attributed to AI, as the aircraft solves many tasks automatically without human help. Russia also develops an AI-based target recognition system: AI will find application in reconnaissance, control and high-precision weapon systems.
The Americans spend enormous amounts of money to be pioneers in the field. The country that will be the first to reap the fruit of AI will have a decisive advantage on the battlefield for many years to come. As John Shanahan, the Director of the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center at the US Department of Defense said, Washington needs to worry about this before Moscow and Beijing do.