Will NATO Fight Back With AI?
Since its inception, one of the major concerns with Artificial Intelligence was that it could be used for war. Now, NATO allies have moved AI into a priority position as they try to support the alliance’s collective defense. The NATO summit this week will celebrate the 75th anniversary of NATO and focus on preserving NATO in today’s dangerous world.
The realities of the war in Ukraine are adding fuel to an AI race.
Earlier this year, NATO more than doubled technology accelerator sites under a Defense Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) program, which works with private and public companies to develop “deep technologies” addressing the alliance’s defense challenges; there will be testing sites in 28 of the 32 NATO nations in a move to support AI, cyber, 5G, and hypersonic and autonomous systems.
Given the increased sophistication of AI-based drones for attacking, we need AI that counters UAS (unmanned aircraft systems) and theater missile defense capabilities. Currently, AI initiatives aim to collect security and intelligence data and use it more efficiently by offloading the human burden of analyzing it.
Propaganda, disinformation campaigns, and malware have become key tools employed using AI. Russia and China are more willing to operate in the gray zone than the U.S. and its allies.
This will rapidly become a major global problem.
