In a shocking statement, a senior defense official revealed to Defense One that the Pentagon's interest in autonomous killer robots is accelerating. Speaking anonymously, the official stated that the Pentagon plans to reduce funding for artificial intelligence research and instead invest in actual AI weapon systems. He noted, "We will no longer invest in 'artificial intelligence' because I don't know what that means. We will invest in autonomous killer robots."
The official added that the current government is more focused on weapon systems and commercial systems rather than so-called "technologies." Another official mentioned that the Pentagon will shift some research and development funds to the private sector. This means the Pentagon wants to change the existing business model from "the government pays $100 million for research, and the company builds the prototype" to "we pay a few million dollars, while the industry pays $98 million, and then they build the prototype."
Looking ahead, the Department of Defense hopes to accelerate the delivery of the most lethal and advanced technologies and capabilities to combat personnel, thus reviewing the current structure to maximize efficiency. Although the military has been conducting some research and ground testing of so-called "Lethal Autonomous Weapons" (LAWs), the Pentagon has been slow to fully embrace this technology due to concerns about killer robots.
According to the first official, this new procurement process will be overseen by a new office described as a "commercial engineering version of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency," which will reallocate personnel from other R&D departments within the Pentagon. While the Trump administration clearly opened the door for the Department of Defense's actions regarding killer robots, the Biden administration's policies have paved the way for this decision.
In 2023, the Pentagon updated its decade-old regulations on LAWs, beginning to accelerate the acceptance of artificial intelligence and establishing a chain of accountability for development and deployment that only requires the signatures of increasingly senior officials. This initiative apparently ignores the long-standing calls from the United Nations for a complete ban on LAWs. With the President's heightened focus on loyalty, officials in senior federal agency positions will almost certainly support decisions made at higher levels. Therefore, we may see the U.S. military commissioning and deploying killer robots in the next four years.
Key Points:
💡 The Pentagon will reduce investment in artificial intelligence research and shift towards the development of autonomous killer robots.
💡 The new procurement model will transfer R&D costs to the private sector to accelerate technology delivery.
🌐 The Biden administration updated regulations on lethal autonomous weapons, advancing the application process for related technologies.
