Article

The use of AI in military contexts : opportunities and regulatory challenges

Robin Geiss, Henning Lahmann

• The military law and law of war review = Revue de droit militaire et de droit de la guerre, Vol. 59, no. 2, 2021, p. 165-195

English

While the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine-learning algorithms in the context of armed conflicts has been subject to scholarly and political debate for at least the past half-decade, to date discussions have focused on the possible development and deployment of lethal autonomous weapon systems. Going beyond this narrow perspective, the article draws attention to other military uses of AI that are conceivable or in fact already exist, for example for the purpose of detention, force protection, equipment maintenance, or reconnaissance. It critically examines these different applications from a legal and ethical perspective, exposing some of the challenges inherent in the technology such as algorithmic bias or predictability. On the basis of existing and emerging approaches to the regulation of ‘civilian’ AI, the article concludes by proposing a granular, tiered way to future regulation of military AI that proceeds from the criticality of each particular application.

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• Revue de droit militaire et de droit de la guerre = The military law and law of war review = Tijdschrift voor militair recht en oorlogsrecht = Zeitschrift für Wehrrecht und Kriegsvölkerrecht = Rivista di diritto militare e di diritto della guerra
• Revue de droit militaire et de droit de la guerre = The military law and law of war review = Tijdschrift voor militair recht en oorlogsrecht = Zeitschrift für Wehrrecht und Kriegsvölkerrecht = Rivista di diritto militare e di diritto della guerra