SUMMARY

As the 21st century geopolitical balance shifts in uncertain ways, there is an increasing eagerness to deploy AI technologies into the both the physical and digital battlefields, to gain both tactical and strategic advantage over adversaries. However, the nature of increasingly powerful and unpredictable AI demands a cautious approach to releasing it before the limitations, risks, and vulnerabilities are fully understood and addressed. The consensus among the discussants was that these technologies are not currently “ready for primetime”, on a number of levels. First, assumptions regarding the ability for AI technologies to “predict” are over-hyped. Second, an increase in power in a specific task does not translate to unrelated tasks: the current generation of AI remains limited to constrained environments – which warzones are not – making the deployment of current AI technologies in a military context highly unpredictable. On June 29, 2018, Technology for Global Security and the Center for Global Security Research hosted a roundtable discussion. The discussion specifically investigated the potential security implications of these technologies as they are considered for use in military capacities. The discussion was attended by a mix of academics, research scientists, venture capitalists, civil society, and industry. ​ This discussion was the first in a series of workshops to better understand the potential role AI will play in international stability and deterrence.