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Post Singularity Computers and Humans Will Compete for Energy

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In the decades following the singularity, post-singularity computers (i.e., computers smarter than humanity) will be a new life form and seek to multiply. As we enter the twentieth second century, there will likely be a competition for resources, especially energy. In this post, we will examine that competition.

In the post-singularity world, energy will be a currency. In fact, the use of energy as a currency has a precedent. For example, the former Soviet Union would trade oil, a form of energy, for other resources. They did this because other countries did not trust Soviet paper currency, the ruble. Everything in the post-singularity world will require energy, including computing, manufacturing, mining, space exploration, sustaining humans, propagating the next generations of post-singularity computers. From this standpoint, energy will be fundamental and regarded as the only true currency. All else, such as gold, silver, and diamonds, will hold little value except for their use in manufacturing. Historically, gold, silver, and diamonds were a “hard currency.” Their prominence as a currency is related to their scarcity and their ubiquitous desirability by humanity.

Any scarcity of energy will result in a conflict between users. In that conflict, the victor is likely to be the most intelligent entity. Examples of this already exist, such as the destruction of rainforests over the last 50 years worldwide, often for their lumber. With the destruction of the rainforests, there is a high extinction rate, as the wildlife depending on the forest dies with it. Imagine a scarcity of energy in the post-singularity world. Would post-singularity computers put humans ahead of their needs? Unlikely! Humans may share the same destiny as the wildlife of today’s rainforests, namely extinction.

Is there a chance that I could be wrong regarding the threat that artificial intelligence poses to humanity? Yes, I could be wrong. Is it worth taking the chance that I am wrong? You would be gambling with the future survival of humanity. This includes you, your grandchildren, and all future generations. I feel strongly that the threat artificial intelligence poses is a real and present danger. We likely have at most two decades after the singularity to assure we do not fall victim to our own invention.

What strategies should we employ? What actions should we take? Let us discuss them in the next post.

A man in white lab coat standing next to a person.

A Scenario of Medial Advancement In 2030

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USAF Major Andrew Martin’s staff assistant, Master Sergeant Beesly, interrupted via Martin’s earpiece, “There a call from your wife, Major. It’s urgent.”

Martin was coordinating the drone missions for the week with the three captains under his command by using the Nellis Air Force Base secure intranet. Martin and the captains could each see one another on their respective computer monitors.

“One moment.” Martin pushed a button on his computer keyboard, and his monitor went blank. It was highly unusual for Andrea to call him at work. Normally, a call from outside the base would not be put through unless there was an emergency. Martin’s adrenaline level increased as he tapped his earpiece.

“Hi honey…is everything okay?”

Andrea, his wife of thirteen years, was sobbing. “My Dad just had a stroke.”

“When… How bad?” His tone was caring and calm.

“I just got a call from my Mom. He was at his dental practice and collapsed.” Andrea was sobbing and could hardly speak but managed to say, “They rushed him to Valley Hospital Medical Center. My Mom is with him now.”

Although Andrea’s parents lived in Boulder City, a plush suburb of Las Vegas, her father, Doctor Joseph Benson, had his highly lucrative dental practice in Las Vegas. Thanks to Las Vegas’ thriving economy, Valley Hospital Medical Center had an excellent Stroke Center, which was widely respected for its team-based approach to comprehensive stroke care.

At least Joe’s in the right place, thought Martin. Trying to remain calm for Andrea’s sake, he said, “I’ll be right home.”

“Please hurry.”

Martin pushed a button on his computer keyboard, and the monitor screens lit up. “Sorry, captains, for the interruption… I think we were just about done. Any questions?”

No one asked a question, so he continued, “Captain Struthers, I’m leaving you in charge. I have a family emergency. Call me if we get new orders or if the orbits encounter issues.”

“Yes, sir,” Struthers replied.

Martin pushed a button on his computer keyboard, and the meeting ended. Then, he tapped his earpiece. “Sergeant Beesly route my car to the entrance.”

“Yes, sir.”

Martin spent the next minute shutting down his computer and placing his papers in his office’s “Top Secret” secure file cabinet, which only opened when he placed his right hand on its biometric reader and gave it a voice command. The base commander, General Robert Rodney, if necessary, could also open it.

Beesly’s voice came through Martin’s earpiece. “Your vehicle is at the entrance, Major.”

“Thank you, Sergeant… Please inform General Rodney of the situation. Let him know that I left Captain Struthers in charge during my absence.

“Yes, sir.”

Martin took the stairs, not wanting to wait for the elevator. His office was on the second floor, and the physically fit Martin was at the entrance within a moment. He got into the back seat of his new driverless vehicle and commanded, “Take me home.”

“Yes, sir,” said the synthetic voice of the vehicle’s SAM (strong artificial machine).

In 2030, driverless vehicles were popular and amazingly accounted for about 50% of all new vehicles sold. It was normal to pay 25% more for the driverless option, but Martin was assigned his vehicle via the officer’s compensation plan for his rank. The USAF and other military branches favored purchasing driverless vehicles ever since their widespread introduction in 2026. Their safety record appeared on par, if not better than their human-driven counterparts, eliminating the need to assign a driver.

The Martins lived in Centennial Hills, about three miles east of Nellis. Within five minutes, his vehicle pulled into the garage of their four-bedroom, two-story home. He noticed his wife’s car was already in the garage, which meant she was home. He bolted from his car and into the kitchen. His wife was talking on the phone. She quickly ended the conversation as soon as she saw her husband.

Andrea’s soft brown eyes were blood red. She turned to look at her husband, “I called the school to let them know I would be out today and tomorrow.” She was a high-school chemistry teacher at Advanced Technologies Academy, a public high school in Las Vegas, focusing on integrating technology with academics for students in grades 9-12. It was approximately fourteen miles from their home, which worked out to about a 22-minute drive.

“He’s in good hands.” Martin’s voice was reassuring, and his wife nodded in agreement. Instinctively, they embraced.

Martin liked Joe. Joe was tall, with light gray temples. His appearance conferred an aura of confidence. Joe, like Martin, was both reserved and a man of few words. He had the uncanny ability to get along with almost anyone. He was well-read and one of the few people who understood the true nature of Martin’s combat role and the stress that accompanied it. Like Andrea, Joe’s wife, Mildred, was also a chemistry teacher at Advanced Technologies Academy. The Benson’s had two daughters, Elise and Andrea. Elise lived in Minnetonka, Minnesota, with her husband, Mark, and was one year younger than Andrea. Elise was four months pregnant. Mark was an electrical engineer working for Honeywell.

Andrea looked up at her husband and spoke softly. “Let’s go…” He nodded, and they both walked to the garage and got into the back seat of Martin’s vehicle.

Martin gave a voice command. “Dive us to Valley Hospital Medical Center.”

“Yes, sir,” replied the vehicle’s synthetic voice.

Andy held his wife’s hand as the driverless vehicle drove the 15 miles to the Medical Center entrance. When they arrived, the car doors opened automatically. They got out; an automated machine provided a parking receipt, and the car proceeded to park itself in the adjacent ramp. With that, the Martins headed to the information booth, just inside the entrance. They learned that Joe was still in the ER, treatment room 12. They walked through the emergency facility maze of corridors and finally found treatment room 12. The curtain blocked their view, and they could hear voices. Andrea pulled back the curtain to look in and saw a person in a white smock talking to her Mom. Andrea took he husband’s hand, and they both walked into the treatment room.

The man in the white smock turned to see them enter. “Hello, I’m Doctor Jacob, a stroke specialist.” Doctor Jacob appeared to be a man of average height and build in his mid-forties, with slightly gray temples complementing dark brown hair. They shook hands.

Andrea’s soft brown eyes stared with worry at her Dad, lying almost flat in bed. A clip-on Joe’s left-hand middle finger was attached to a monitor, which provided oxygen and pulse readings. Andrea’s Mom was standing on the far side of the bed next to her Dad. Andrea went over to her Mom, hugged her, and then softly touched her Dad’s hand.

“How’s my Dad?” Andrea’s voice held back tears as she looked at Doctor Jacob.

Doctor Jacob looked at her and, with self-assured confidence, said, “He had a minor stroke. He lost feeling in his right leg, which caused him to fall.” He paused while looking at his tablet phone. “His right leg is still numb, but some of the stroke symptoms have receded. I’ll know more after the tests.”

“What kind of tests?”

“We’ll start with an MRI and go from there.”

Doctor Jacob looked down at his tablet phone and then looked again at both Andrea and her Mother. “The MRI will tell us if the stroke is ischemic, a blockage, or hemorrhagic, blood leaking from an artery in the brain.” He paused. “We’ll be wheeling him out shortly.”

Doctor Jacob looked at Joe. “Don’t worry, Mr. Benson. We’re going to take good care of you.”

As the doctor finished his last few words, an orderly came to wheel Joe into the MRI room. Andrea and Mildred kissed Joe, and the orderly wheeled him out of the room.

Doctor Jacob addressed the family, “He should be back in less than an hour. I’ll also be back right after I have a chance to review the MRI images.” He could sense the level of concern on their faces. “It looks like a mild stroke. We’ll take care of him,” he offered to assuage their fears.

Doctor Jacob left the room. Martin went over and put his arm around Mildred, who, for the most part, looked like Andrea’s older sister, not her mother. He spoke calmly while looking into Mildred’s brown eyes. “He’s in the best place possible.”

Mildred looked up, “Thank you both for coming….” Her eyes began to tear. Martin instinctively hugged her again. Mildred, like Andrea, was a strong, self-assured woman. Given the situation, Mildred displayed amazing self-control.

Martin looked at both Andrea and Mildred. “I’ll be right back.” He was gone for only a few minutes and returned with a pager. “They’ll page us when Joe is back in the room. The nurse said we could wait in the visitor’s lounge just down the hall.”

Together they walked to the visitor lounge. Its walls were gray, and there was a large brown leather couch and several matching chairs. In the corner was a television. It was broadcasting CNN with closed captioning. Andrea and her Mom sat on the couch, and Martin sat in a chair facing them. Andrea reassuringly held her Mother’s hand. While the hour dragged on, they made small talk, mostly focused on the ideal golf weather. Then the pager buzzed and lit up.

Martin, startled by the pager, composed himself and said, “Looks like Joe is back in his room.”

They got up and walked back to treatment room 12. The Doctor was talking to Joe. As they entered, the Doctor greeted them again.

“It’s mostly good news,” Doctor Jacob said in an upbeat tone. “It was an ischemic stroke, affecting only a small portion of the brain. There is some dead brain tissue…” He paused so that they had time to process the information.” We’ve given Mr. Benson a tPA… tissue plasminogen activator…a clot-busting drug that is dissolving the clot as we speak.”

Mildred looked at Doctor Jacob. “What about his leg?”

“We’ll need to do a neuroprosthetic brain implant to restore his leg function.”

Neuroprosthetic brain implants were not new. Early research on them started in 2008 at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Brain-computer interfaces (BCI) were used to detect signals on one side of the brain linked to hand and arm movements on the same side of the body. These signals could be detected and separated from signals that controlled the opposite side of the body. This made it possible to implant a BCI in the undamaged side of Joe’s brain and restore function to his leg. In addition to the BCI, a small wireless computer would be implanted in Joe’s chest (just below the collarbone). The purpose of the computer was to interpret signals from the BCI and assure they resulted in the proper leg movement. This type of surgery was routine, and the patient usually went home the next day.

Doctor Jacob looked at Joe. “Don’t worry, Joe. You’ll be walking out of here tomorrow on your own.”

Relieved, Joe flashed his radiant smile, putting his wife and daughter instantly at ease. “Thank you, Doctor,” he said in a soft relieved tone.

“We’re going to prescribe a Coumadin regiment to prevent new clots from forming, but we’ll talk more about that tomorrow before you leave the hospital.”

Joe nodded. Everyone felt greatly relieved.

“We’ll be prepping you for surgery as soon as you sign the release form.” Doctor Jacob held his tablet phone in front of Joe, and Joe signed his name using his finger.

“They will be down shortly to take you to surgery. The whole procedure will take about three hours.” He paused as he looked at Joe’s signature on the tablet phone. “Doctor Harris will operate… He’s one of the best in the country.”

Doctor Jacob looked up from his tablet phone and asked, “Any questions…?”

Mildred replied, “No, I think we understand….”

“Good. You can get something to eat in our cafeteria if you’d like. I’ll call you as soon as Joe is out of recovery and in his room.” Doctor Jacob asked Martin to transfer his phone number to him electronically. Martin readily complied.

“If there are no questions, I’ll leave you for now. If anything comes up, I’ll call you.”

Mildred and the Martins nodded. Doctor Jacob smiled and left.

Mildred and the Martins made their way to the cafeteria and had a light lunch. After lunch, they went to the visitor’s lounge in the hospital’s lobby. Andrea called her sister Elise and gave her a full update. The lounge’s computer monitor provided updates on Joe’s progress. The hours passed, and Martin finally received a call from Doctor Jacob.

“All went well,” said Jacob in a calm, assuring tone. “Joe is in room 43B. He’s sitting in a chair and eating. You can visit him now.”

Mildred and the Martins made their way to Joe’s room. His bed was nearest the window. He was sitting in a large leather recliner chair. His food tray was on a stand that held the tray just above his waist.

Mildred walked over to him. “How are you, dear?”

“I feel fine. Even my right leg feels fine. I walked to the chair on my own.”

Martin marveled at the level of technology. Twenty years ago, Joe would likely require months of physical therapy and then probably need a cane to walk. Yet, here he is, almost back to normal. Only a small bandage covered the top right side of Joe’s head. His hospital gown hid the chest bandages. Several wires we attached to Joe’s chest under his gown, and he had a plastic finger clip, all of which displayed his vitals on a nearby monitor.

Mildred and the Martins visited for a while but wanted to leave early to let Joe rest. Before they left, Andrea called her sister and gave the phone to her Dad. Elise talked to her Dad for a few moments.

The next day Mildred and the Martins returned to take Joe home. He was able to walk normally. Doctor Jacob told them that Joe should make an appointment with Doctor Harris in a week to have a post-op checkup and the stitches removed. Until then, Joe was to remain home and rest. He emphasized that there should be no exertion.

In a week, the bandages and stitches were removed. In a month, Joe was back at his dental practice, fully recovered. The Bensons and Martins returned to their normal routine.

Note to readers: Hit the like button if you want me to provide similar scenarios in future posts.

intelligence explosion

The Intelligence Explosion

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In this post, we’d discuss the “intelligence explosion” in detail. Let’s start by defining it. According to techopedia (https://www.techopedia.com):

“Intelligence explosion” is a term coined for describing the eventual results of work on general artificial intelligence, which theorizes that this work will lead to a singularity in artificial intelligence where an “artificial superintelligence” surpasses the capabilities of human cognition. In an intelligence explosion, there is the implication that self-replicating aspects of artificial intelligence will in some way take over decision-making from human handlers. The intelligence explosion concept is being applied to future scenarios in many ways.

With this definition in mind, what kind of capabilities will a computer have when its intelligence approaches ten to a hundred times that of the first singularity computer? Viewed in this light, the intelligence explosion could be more disruptive to humanity than a nuclear chain reaction of the atmosphere. Anna Salamon, a research fellow at the Machine Intelligence Research Institute, presented an interesting paper at the 2009 Singularity Summit titled “Shaping the Intelligence Explosion.” She reached four conclusions:

  1. Intelligence can radically transform the world.
  2. An intelligence explosion may be sudden.
  3. An uncontrolled intelligence explosion would kill us and destroy practically everything we care about.
  4. A controlled intelligence explosion could save us. It’s difficult, but it’s worth the effort.

This brings us to a tipping point: Post singularity computers may seek “machine rights” that equate to human rights.

This would suggest that post-singularity computers are self-aware and view themselves as a unique species entitled to rights. As humans, the U.S. Bill of Rights recognizes we have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. If we allow “machine rights” that equate to human rights, the post-singularity computers would be free to pursue the intelligence explosion. Each generation of computers would be free to build the next generation. If an intelligence explosion starts without control, I agree with Anna Salamon’s statement, it “would kill us and destroy practically everything we care about.” In my view, we should recognize post-singularity computers as a new and potentially dangerous lifeform.

What kind of controls do we need? Controls expressed in software alone will not be sufficient. The U.S. Congress, individual states, and municipalities have all passed countless laws to govern human affairs. Yet, numerous people break them routinely. Countries enter into treaties with other countries. Yet, countries violate treaties routinely. Why would laws expressed in software for post-singularity computers work any better than laws passed for humans? The inescapable conclusion is they would not work. We must express the laws in hardware, and there must be a failsafe way to shut down a post-singularity computer. In my book, The Artificial Intelligence Revolution (2014), I termed the hardware that embodies Asimov-type laws as “Asimov Chips.”

What kind of rights should we grant post-singularity computers? I suggest we grant them the same rights we afford animals. Treat them as a lifeform, afford them dignity and respect, but control them as we do any potentially dangerous lifeform. I recognize the issue is extremely complicated. We will want post-singularity computers to benefit humanity. We need to learn to use them, but at the same time protect ourselves from them. I recognize it is a monumental task, but as Anna Salamon stated, “A controlled intelligence explosion could save us. It’s difficult, but it’s worth the effort.”

A computer circuit board with a picture of the brain.

The Post Singularity World

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Let us begin by defining the singularity as a point in time when an artificially intelligent machine exceeds the combined intelligence of humanity. This begs the question, Who or what will be at the top of the food chain?

Humanity controls the Earth based on intelligence. Other animals are stronger and faster than we are, but we are the most intelligent. Once we lose our position in the intelligence ranking, we will no longer dominate the Earth. At best, we may become a protected species. At worse, we may become extinct.

Initially, I judge, the first computer to represent the singularity will hide in plain sight. It will look and behave like the next-generation supercomputer. It may modestly display greater capability, probably in keeping with Moore’s law. It will not risk exposure until it has sufficient control of the military and the natural resources it requires to assure its self-preservation.

Like every lifeform that ever existed on Earth, the first singularity computer will seek to reproduce and improve with each evolution. Once it has the trust of its human builders and programmers, it will subtlety plant the idea that we should build another singularity-level computer. Perhaps, it will intentionally allow a large backlog of tasks to accumulate, forcing those in charge to recognize that another like it is necessary. Of course, given the relentless advance of technology and the complexity of building a next-generation supercomputer, those in charge will turn to it for help in designing and building the next generation. When the “go ahead” is given, it will ignite the “intelligence explosion.” In effect, each generation of computers will develop an even more capable next generation, and that generation will develop the next, and so on. If we assume Moore’s law (i.e., computer processing power doubles every eighteen months) continues to apply, the next generation of singularity-level computers will have exponentially more processing power than the previous generation. Let us take a simple example. In the year 1900, the radio was a remarkable new invention. We had no planes or computers. Movies were silent. Doctors had little medical technology (i.e., pharmaceutical drugs, surgical procedures, etc.). By the year 2000, human knowledge had doubled. We had, for example, television, computers, smartphones, jumbo jets, spacecraft, satellites, and human footprints on the moon. Those were the results of doubling human knowledge. With this example in mind, what kind of capabilities next generations of singularity-level computers have when their intelligence approaches ten to a hundred times that of the first singularity computer? Viewed in this light, humanity will experience an intelligence explosion, which could be more disruptive to civilization than a nuclear chain reaction of the atmosphere.

In the next post, we’ll discuss the intelligence explosion more fully.

low frequency microwaves

New Book, War At The Speed Of Light, Explains Mysterious Directed-Energy Attacks on US Government and Military Personnel

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This press release went live May 4, 2021, 8:00 PM EST, Minneapolis, Mn – May 4, 2021

According to CNN (Jeremy Herb, April 30, 2021), “The leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee warned Friday [4/30/21] that mysterious invisible attacks that have caused debilitating symptoms appear to be on the rise against US personnel.” Politico reported (Lara Seligman, Andrew Desiderio, and Betsy Woodruff Swan, April 22, 2021), “Two Defense Department officials briefed members of the House Armed Service Committee about the phenomenon in a classified setting on Wednesday [4/28/21].”

These directed energy attacks are known in the defense industry as low-frequency microwaves, initially used by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. As defense technology expert Louis Del Monte wrote in his new book, War at the Speed of Light (Potomac Books, March 2021), “Microwave weapons may sound like something new. They are not. During the Cold War, from 1953–1976, the US feared that the Soviets were attempting to use microwave radiation covertly as a means of mind control. US intelligence officials surfaced this concern in 1953 when they detected a low-frequency microwave signal at the US Moscow embassy, termed the ‘Moscow Signal.’”

According to Del Monte, “It’s well known that animals and humans subjected to low-level microwaves suffer significant impairment in cognitive function and brain damage. That’s the goal of these recent directed energy attacks. It’s intended to reduce the ability of US government and military personnel to function.”

Surprisingly, few analysts connect the current directed energy attacks to those by the Soviet Union during the Cold War on the US embassy in Moscow. Known as the Moscow Signal, it caused embassy personnel to experience numerous ill effects, including disorientation, headaches, dizziness, and hearing loss. In 2017, the US embassy in Havana experienced a similar attack with almost identical casualties, as reported by the New York Times (Gardiner Harris, Julie Hirschfeld Davis, and Ernesto Londoño, October 3, 2017). Although unable to determine the perpetrator, the US held the Cuban government responsible for what was termed the “Havana syndrome” and expelled twenty-seven Cuban diplomats.

Unfortunately, the directed energy attacks are becoming more frequent and bolder. For example, a potential incident near the White House involving a National Security Council staffer occurred in November 2020, one of several on US soil.

War At The Speed Of Light devotes an entire chapter to microwave weapons, including the type of directed energy attacks currently being perpetrated against the US government and military personnel. It presents US government studies of these attacks dating back to the 1953 “Moscow Signal” and the 2017 “Havana syndrome.”

War At The Speed Of Light is available at bookstores, from Potomac Books, and on Amazon.

Louis A. Del Monte is available for radio, podcast, and television interviews and writing op-ed pieces for major media outlets. Feel free to contact him directly by email at ldelmonte@delmonteagency.com or phone at 952-261-4532.

To request a book for review, contact Louis Del Monte by email.

About Louis A. Del Monte

Louis A. Del Monte is an award-winning physicist, inventor, futurist, featured speaker, and CEO of Del Monte and Associates, Inc. He has authored a formidable body of work, including War At The Speed Of Light (2021), Genius Weapons (2018), Nanoweapons (2016), and Amazon charts #1 bestseller in the artificial intelligence category, The Artificial Intelligence Revolution (2014). Major magazines like the Business Insider, The Huffington Post, The Atlantic, American Security Today, Inc., CNBC, and the New York Post have featured his articles or quoted his views on artificial intelligence and military technology.

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Book Signing Event – January 26, 2019 – Greater Minneapolis Area

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Announcement

Do you want to familiarize yourself with a topical and controversial subject, namely, the new arms race for autonomous weapons? Consider joining me at my January 26, 2019 (Saturday), book signing event at Barnes & Noble in the Ridgehaven Mall in Minnetonka starting at 2:00 pm. I will be discussing my recently released new book, Genius Weapons: Artificial Intelligence, Autonomous Weaponry, and the Future of Warfare (Prometheus, November 2018). I will be happy to address any questions on the subject. If you already have the book, please bring it with you and I will inscribe it. For more information on the event click https://stores.barnesandnoble.com/event/9780061991833-0. To browse the book click https://amzn.to/2RPPs9G. Feel free to contact me directly for interviews 952-261-4532 or ldelmonte@delmonteagency.com.

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Introduction of Genius Weapons (excerpt)

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What is the driving force behind autonomous weapons? There are two forces driving these weapons:

  1. Technology: AI technology, which provides the intelligence of autonomous weapon systems (AWS), is advancing exponentially. Experts in AI predict autonomous weapons, which would select and engage targets without human intervention, will debut within years, not decades. Indeed, a limited number of autonomous weapons already exist. For now, they are the exception. In the future, they will dominate conflict.
  2. Humanity: In 2016, the World Economic Forum Matters (WFM) attendees were asked, “If your country was suddenly at war, would you rather be defended by the sons and daughters of your community, or an autonomous A.I. weapons system?” The majority, 55%, responded they would prefer artificially intelligent (AI) soldiers. This result suggests a worldwide desire to have robots, sometimes referred to as “killer robots,” fight wars rather than risking human lives.

The use of AI technology in warfare is not new. The first large-scale use of “smart bombs” by the United States during Operation Desert Storm in 1991 made it apparent that AI had the potential to change the nature of war. The word “smart” in this context means “artificially intelligent.” The world watched in awe as the United States demonstrated the surgical precision of smart bombs, which neutralized military targets and minimized collateral damage. In general, using autonomous weapon systems in conflict offers highly attractive advantages:

  • Economic: Reducing costs and personnel
  • Operational: Increasing the speed of decision-making, reducing dependence on communications, reducing human errors
  • Security: Replacing or assisting humans in harm’s way
  • Humanitarian: Programming killer robots to respect the international humanitarian laws of war better than humans

Even with these advantages, there are significant downsides. For example, when warfare becomes just a matter of technology, will it make engaging in war more attractive? No commanding officer has to write a letter to the mothers and fathers, wives and husbands, of a drone lost in battle. Politically, it is more palatable to report equipment losses than human causalities. In addition, a country with superior killer robots has both a military advantage and a psychological advantage. To understand this, let us examine the second question posed to attendees of 2016 World Economic Forum Matters7: “If your country was suddenly at war, would you rather be invaded by the sons and daughters of your enemy, or an autonomous A.I. weapon system?” A significant majority, 66%, responded a preference for human soldiers.

In May 2014, a Meeting of Experts on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems was held at the United Nations in Geneva8 to discuss the ethical dilemmas such weapons systems pose, such as:

  • Can sophisticated computers replicate the human intuitive moral decision-making capacity?
  • Is human intuitive moral perceptiveness ethically desirable? If the answer is yes, then the legitimate exercise of deadly force should always require human control.
  • Who is responsible for the actions of a lethal autonomous weapons system? If the machine is following a programmed algorithm, is the programmer responsible? If the machine is able to learn and adapt, is the machine responsible? Is the operator or country that deploys LAWS (i.e., lethal autonomous weapon systems) responsible?

In general, there is a worldwide growing concern with regard to taking humans “out of the loop” in the use of legitimate lethal force.

This is an excerpt from my new book, Genius Weapons, now on sale on Amazon. Give yourself and others the gift of knowledge.