US at risk of losing AI arms race to China and Russia

The US is at risk of losing the artificial intelligence ‘arms race’ with rivals Russia and China, a former deputy US secretary of defence has said.

Sixty years after the Cold War between America and the Soviet Union ushered in a new era of ballistic missile development, Robert Work says the US is facing another “Sputnik moment” - the rapidly escalating international competition to create AI.

It is now generally accepted that advances in AI will define warfare: developing more effective training systems, improving intelligence gathering and analysis, building more advanced automated weapons and creating fully-unmanned combat operations.

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Yet in a report published by CNN, Work warns that the US military must now decide if it wants to “lead the coming revolution, or fall victim to it”, amid emerging challenges from China and Russia.

“This stark choice will be determined by the degree to which the Department of Defense (DoD) recognises the revolutionary military potential of AI and advanced autonomous systems,” he says.

His warning follows recent moves by Russia and China to put AI development at the heart of their future military planning.

In September, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the country that takes the lead in the sphere of computer-based artificial intelligence will rule the world.

Russian state-media has reported the military is developing drones, vehicles, robots and cruise missiles that would be able to make decisions on their own.

China has gone even further, publishing a detailed road map outlining a national plan to prioritise the application of AI and lead the world in new technology by directly linking defence and commercial development.

While there has been some effort by the DoD to collaborate with Silicon Valley, a truly public-private push to drive AI development remains some way off, meaning the US risks falling further behind its international rivals.