Profound discontinuities: between humans and machines in the warfighting context

Abstract

The genesis of this article lies in a brief review of some of the literature on emergent military systems involving the use of Artificial Intelligence and autonomous technologies. The review shows that there is a growing tendency to overstate and/or misrepresent the nature and capabilities of such systems. As a recent survey conducted within the Australian Defence Force (ADF) also shows, this is reflected in the “attitudes towards autonomous systems” that new entrants to the military appear to exhibit. The potentially debilitating effects of this tendency should not be underestimated for it may have a significant negative impact in the military-operational context. This article discusses the nuances and implications of this mythologizing trend. It corroborates its observations by examining the ADF survey in some detail. It concludes by calling for a re-evaluation of how we approach and think about these increasingly sophisticated technologies and machines and of their application in the warfighting context. This, it argues, will require designing realistic and grounded training and acclimatizing programs that will equip the warfighters of the future with the necessary skills, but also the appropriate mindset, when they are called upon to wage war with these kinds of machines.