via www.ottawacitizen.com
On a bright fall day last year off the coast of Southern California, an Air Force B-1 bomber launched an experimental missile that may herald the future of warfare.
Initially, pilots aboard the plane directed the missile, but halfway to its destination, it severed communication with its operators. Alone, without human oversight, the missile decided which of three ships to attack, dropping to just above the sea surface and striking a 260-foot unmanned freighter.
Warfare is increasingly guided by software. Today, armed drones can be operated by remote pilots peering into video screens thousands of miles from the battlefield. But now, some scientists say, arms makers have crossed into troubling territory: They are developing weapons that rely on artificial intelligence, not human instruction, to decide what to target and whom to kill.
As these weapons become smarter and nimbler, critics fear they will become increasingly difficult for humans to control — or to defend against. And while pinpoint accuracy could save civilian lives, critics fear weapons without human oversight could make war more likely, as easy as flipping a switch.
Armaments with even more advanced self-governance are on the drawing board, although the details usually are kept secret. “An autonomous weapons arms race is already taking place,” said Steve Omohundro, a physicist and artificial intelligence specialist at Self-Aware Systems, a research center in Palo Alto, Calif. “They can respond faster, more efficiently and less predictably.”
Concerned by the prospect of a robotics arms race, representatives from dozens of nations will meet on Thursday in Geneva to consider whether development of these weapons should be restricted by the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons.
The Latest on: Autonomous weapons
[google_news title=”” keyword=”Autonomous weapons” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Autonomous weapons
- Apple Vision Pro Sales Slump, Robot Weapons Get Scarier, TikTok Ban Is Here and Moreon April 27, 2024 at 4:30 am
Apple got a dose of reality as people are caring less about its Vision Pro. A robot tank with green eyes and a robo dog with a flamethrower show that the future of warfare is here. And to round things ...
- Meet Nvidia's Canadian secret weaponon April 26, 2024 at 8:55 am
Nvidia wasn’t just another tech startup when Fidler came aboard as employee No. 1 at the California-based company’s Canadian research outpost. The company had been knocking around since the 1990s, and ...
- Raytheon: Customers Out Of Money, Company Selling Weapons For Wars Paston April 26, 2024 at 2:39 am
Raytheon's stock struggles despite Ukraine's war, as its signature weapons may not be suitable for modern needs, impacting growth prospects. Read more here.
- AI-enabled weapons systems need human values, says Bishop of Newcastleon April 25, 2024 at 5:00 pm
“To implement AI’s benefits well, military cultural values need to be named, explained, and then translated into autonomous weapon systems’ command and control — especially where the meaning of ‘just’ ...
- Battle of the Bots: Hasbro's Megatron Transformers Toy Faces Off Against Optimus Prime in Autonomous Showdownon April 25, 2024 at 2:04 pm
Hasbro and Robosen are at it again with the famed autonomous Transformers toy robot ... it is known that Optimus Prime's trailer includes an assortment of his popular weapons, one of which makes the ...
- Hamas official says group would lay down its arms if an independent Palestinian state is establishedon April 25, 2024 at 8:59 am
A top Hamas political official has told The Associated Press the Islamic militant group is willing to agree to a five-year truce with Israel and that it will lay down its weapons and convert into a ...
- Hamas official says group would lay down its arms if Palestinian state is establishedon April 25, 2024 at 8:52 am
The suggestion that Hamas would disarm appeared to be a significant concession by the militant group officially committed to Israel’s destruction.
- Hamas to lay down weapons if Palestine sees two-state solutionon April 25, 2024 at 5:51 am
Palestinian resistance group Hamas would lay down its weapons and convert into a political party if an independent Palestinian state is established ...
- 'Will lay down weapons if...': Hamas says it would disarm but conditions applyon April 25, 2024 at 1:35 am
Hayya, the leader who had hailed the October 7 attack, the terror group would accept ‘a fully sovereign Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and the return of Palestinian refugees in ...
- Air Force doesn't pick Boeing to make first batch of autonomous droneson April 24, 2024 at 3:39 pm
The Collaborative Combat Aircraft program aims to deliver at least 1,000 autonomous drones, which would create a swarming effect to evade air defenses alongside piloted crewed fighters.
via Bing News
