Why autonomous weapons are inevitable
And what we can still do about it
In August, at the United Nations’ Convention on Conventional Weapons, 80 countries met to ban autonomous weapons. The US, Russia, Australia, Israel, and South Korea blocked the attempt. Last week, Russia reduced the length of the next convention in 2019 to just one week. This will make negotiations harder.
Unlike the push against nuclear and chemical weapons, these countries say they want to explore the potential benefits of lethal autonomous weapon systems first. Most global powers, like the US, India, Russia, and China, are actively developing them.
Autonomous weapons will change warfare more than any other technology. They can act and engage without human oversight. Unlike human soldiers, they can’t get killed or injured — at worst they get destroyed or damaged. They’re faster and more precise, and they can operate outside of parameters in which a human would survive. They do not take years of training, and they’re easily mass-produced.
They can also be used for policing and surveillance. Whereas humans can get emotional and ignore rules of engagement, these weapon systems can be monitored and controlled. They are programmed and can be tested. Self-defense will not be a valid excuse for them.
