Autonomous weapons will be tireless, efficient killing machines

The next major military conflict on a global scale could be over very quickly, writes Quartz, predicting that drones and robots will become the soldiers of the future.

This is not some dystopian fantasy; it is a very plausible future brought about by the development of autonomous weapons, and we must prepare for it.

>>>Musk and experts call on the UN to ban ‘autonomous weapons’

In May, several Google employees resigned because the company decided to assist the U.S. military in developing AI capabilities for drones (the project was later abandoned). Recently, even 2,400 artificial intelligence experts, concerned about the development of killing technology, decided that they would not assist in the development of autonomous weapons as they could fall into the wrong hands.

Autonomous weapons have many advantages over regular soldiers as they can withstand all terrains and conditions, do not require years of training but can practice in simulated situations or through play, do not get tired, and are more precise. It is also easier to justify military actions to the public when autonomous weapons are involved.

>>>We have entered the ‘Terminator era’

How can this be stopped? One option is to ban or limit the development of autonomous weapons, similar to what has been implemented for nuclear weapons. However, this is very difficult to achieve as modern weapons already have sensors and cameras connected to computers, and they just need to be linked with artificial intelligence. Furthermore, it is much harder to monitor the development of autonomous weapons as they do not require the construction of large facilities and do not leave traces of plutonium as is the case with nuclear weapons.

Therefore, the development of autonomous weapons cannot be stopped, but their use against civilians can be prohibited.