UN Disarmament Chief Warns AI Brings Machine Warfare Closer

(MENAFN) The head of the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR) has warned that the growing integration of artificial intelligence into military operations is bringing machine-driven warfare closer, as automated systems accelerate battlefield decisions and reduce the time available for human intervention.

Speaking at a news conference at UN headquarters in New York on Tuesday, UNIDIR Director Robin Geiss introduced new initiatives from the organization's Centre of Excellence on AI, Peace and Security, highlighting concerns about the expanding role of autonomous technologies in armed conflict.

"I think we can say machine warfare is coming ever closer, and the question, put simply, that's in front of us, is really: Are we going to let machines target and kill human beings?" Robin Geiss said at a news conference at UN headquarters in New York on new initiatives from UNIDIR's Centre of Excellence on AI, Peace and Security.

Geiss explained that artificial intelligence and autonomous capabilities are already being applied across multiple military functions, including intelligence assessment, target recognition, drone operations, cyberattacks and information campaigns.

"As we speak, decision cycles are compressing; they're compressing to machine speed, and the margin for human judgment is increasingly narrow, including in the nuclear domain," he said.

He also warned that the wider availability of advanced AI tools is lowering the barriers to conducting highly sophisticated operations, potentially enabling non-state groups to access capabilities that were previously more difficult to obtain.

Geiss further highlighted the influence of a limited number of governments and technology companies over security developments, noting that existing arms control systems were not designed to address the challenges created by these emerging technologies.

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