Is 'Killer Robot' Warfare About To Become The 'New Arms Race?'

Russian arms maker Kalashnikov is developing a suite of fully automated weapons

Mark Smith, BBC: Is 'killer robot' warfare closer than we think?

More than 100 of the world's top robotics experts wrote a letter to the United Nations recently calling for a ban on the development of "killer robots" and warning of a new arms race. But are their fears really justified?

Entire regiments of unmanned tanks; drones that can spot an insurgent in a crowd of civilians; and weapons controlled by computerised "brains" that learn like we do, are all among the "smart" tech being unleashed by an arms industry many believe is now entering a "third revolution in warfare".

"In every sphere of the battlefield - in the air, on the sea, under the sea or on the land - the military around the world are now demonstrating prototype autonomous weapons," says Toby Walsh, professor of artificial intelligence at Sydney's New South Wales University.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: The introduction of AI (artificial intelligence) weapons platforms is a truly revolutionary development in warfare .... and I do agree with the growing view that we are entering a "third revolution in warfare". These platforms will not only replace human soldiers from doing dangerous tasks, but they will also be infinitely more lethal when it comes to quickly targeting and eliminating opponents on the battlefield at a pace that humans cannot match. Drones, robot sentries, mobile ground weapons, naval drones .... this is just a start.