ABSTRACT

This chapter discusses the military robotics revolution in the context of ‘official’ visions of future warfare. It is argued that all branches of warfare (aerial, land and naval) will be transformed by the increasing proliferation of unmanned systems. Military robots will initially take over all of the ‘dangerous, dull and dirty’ tasks and will operate under close human supervision. But someday – maybe as soon as 10-15 years – robots will be able to operate autonomously and could largely replace human soldiers in the battlespace. With machines becoming smarter and more capable, there is a lesser need for humans going into action, or even of humans being in continuous control of unmanned systems. Increasingly advanced AI will enable robots to operate more autonomously and they will develop many ‘humanlike capabilities’, which will enable them to develop effective strategies and purposeful behavior (Hambling 2006b). Computers may never become universally intelligent, but they could easily be able to outsmart humans in many domains that are relevant for warfare.