In an era of rapid technological advancements and the never-ending push for AI to control everything we hear and see, one particular development has emerged as a grave concern that echoes warnings in sci-fi movies like The Terminator and The Matrix – The Rise of the Machines!
This week, the Congressional Research Service issued a report on U.S. Policy on Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems.
Lethal autonomous weapon systems (LAWS), a dystopian and controversial category of weaponry, operate without the direct involvement of human operators. Instead, these high-tech killing machines rely on sensors and computer algorithms to autonomously identify and obliterate/kill targets. While many of these systems are supposedly still in the early stages of development, the possibility of widespread implementation of LAWS raises some very chilling concerns.
Robot killing machines and A.I. making decisions on who will be killed is no longer Sci-Fi, it’s here and is being championed by people Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley.
“Today, we are in … probably the biggest change in military history,” Milley said during a March 31 discussion with Defense One. “We’re at a pivotal moment in history from a military standpoint. We’re at what amounts to a fundamental change in the very character of war.”
“Over the next 10 to 15 years, you’ll see large portions of advanced countries’ militaries become robotic,” Milley said. “If you add robotics with artificial intelligence and precision munitions and the ability to see at range, you’ve got the mix of a real fundamental change.”
“That’s coming. Those changes, that technology … we are looking at inside of 10 years.” “I would submit that the country, the nation-state, that takes those technologies and adapts them most effectively and optimizes them for military operations, that country is probably going to have a decisive advantage at the beginning of the next conflict,” Milley said.
Constitutionality at Stake
As a freedom-loving American, I hold the U.S. Constitution in high regard, valuing the principles of individual liberty and limited government. The arrival of LAWS raises serious questions about the constitutionality of delegating life-and-death decisions to computer algorithms.
Our founding fathers warned against government bodies having this much power – they would be rolling over in their graves if they knew our current officials were working on ways to allow so-called A.I. machines to have the power to determine who lives and who dies autonomously. The absence of human control over these critical life and death decisions undermines the fundamental rights and values enshrined in our Constitution.
Phycological Warfare
As it is, current versions of A.I. driven chatbots and content creations tools are being designed to push certain WOKE points of view. Tools like CHAT GTP are being used to replace journalists and writers, and have been programed so their algorithms promote radical left-wing policies and content. Much of what you now read on the internet was created solely through CHAT GTP, and is being sold to you as legitimate content by big tech and big media!
The Chatbot refuses to define what a ‘woman’ is, claiming “‘”There is no one specific characteristic that defines a woman, as gender identity is complex and multi-faceted.” But even more disturbing is it spits out content suggesting killing millions would be better than using offensive language.
In fact, Elon Musk described it as ‘concerning’ when the program suggested it would prefer to detonate a nuclear weapon, killing millions, rather than use a racial slur.
The rise of the machines already controls what you see and read! A new report revealed that in 2022, 47.4% of all internet traffic came from bots, a 5.1% increase over the previous year.
Echoes of Dystopian Nightmares
The parallels between the rise of LAWS and decades of sci-fi movies warning about the coming Rise of the Machines is terrifying. The advent of Lethal autonomous weapon systems (LAWS) brings to mind visions of SKYNET in Terminator and the machines in The Matrix. These movies warned us about a future where AI systems gain self-awareness and turn against humanity.
While such scenarios may seem far-fetched, they serve as warnings of the potential dangers of unchecked technological advancement when combined with psychotic government officials who have zero value for human life. LAWS represent a significant step toward a world where machines — programmed by psychopaths — possess the capacity to override human judgment and wreak havoc on the world.
Despite misleading news reports from the government/media propagandists, U.S. policy does not impose an outright ban on the development or use of lethal autonomous weapon systems (LAWS). While the officials claim we do now possess LAWS in our arsenal, senior military and defense leaders have openly acknowledged the potential for future development in response to advancements made by other nations. And earlier in the month, we know that the Navy was testing the expanded use of Networked Autonomous Warships.
According to Navy officials, the future of maritime warfare is a concerning prospect that combines a blend of manned and unmanned aircraft, ships, and various other A.I. driven systems. The U.S. Pacific Fleet recently conducted tests to assess concepts and capabilities, mainly focusing on unmanned systems. The objective was to determine how the fleet would establish connections, exercise command and control, and effectively coordinate a multitude of disparate uncrewed systems that operate remotely, semi-autonomously, or even worse, fully autonomously.
The multidomain exercise is the second iteration of an experiment first held in 2021. During the Unmanned Integrated Battle Problem 21, the Zumwalt-class destroyer USS Michael Monsoor (DDG-1001) provided a base for operations with unmanned surface vessels, underwater vehicles, and aerial drones during experimentation with manned and unmanned systems.
This A.I. driven warfare vision is already here. In fact, the Defense Department (DOD) just invited the top figures in the defense, tech, and academic fields for the inaugural conference on forging “trusted AI and autonomy” in preparation for future conflicts.
Simultaneously, the Pentagon is undertaking an aggressive recruitment campaign, offering lucrative six-figure salaries to accomplished specialists capable of advancing and incorporating cutting-edge technologies, such as augmented reality, artificial intelligence, human state monitoring, and autonomous unmanned systems.
The Defense Department (DOD) is seeking an alarming $1.8 billion in funding for AI projects for the next year, a record-breaking amount. This staggering request surpasses the estimated $1.6 billion that China’s military is investing in AI advancements.
The implications of of these so-called advancements raises serious questions about how far along these technologies really are and how close we are to the dystopian future many have been warning about for decades.