-
Jeffrey Hinton says Russia’s war in Ukraine led him to change his stance on the role of AI in war.
-
Hinton told NBC News that the relationship between AI and the military is “more complex” than previously thought.
-
Hinton has long warned against military use of the technology.
Geoffrey Hinton, a computer scientist often referred to as the “godfather of AI,” said Russia’s war in Ukraine has changed the way he thinks about using artificial intelligence on the battlefield.
“I think this is more complicated than I thought,” Hinton told NBC News in an interview published Tuesday.
Hinton has long warned against military uses of AI and previously advocated for an international ban on lethal autonomous weapons.
“We thought we should be working hard to stop lethal autonomous weapons, but when you look at what’s going on in Ukraine, things are getting more complicated,” Hinton said in an interview.
Hinton said the vital role of drones, including AI-equipped drones, is Its experience helping defend Ukraine against invading Russian forces made it more receptive to military use of the technology.
“Ukraine is surviving thanks to drones,” Hinton told the news agency. “If that is the essence of modern warfare, it is very difficult to argue that a country should reject it.”
Although Ukraine uses AI-powered drones against Russian targets, its defenses rely on large and continued production of munitions, including drones that are largely piloted and directed by humans.
Despite acknowledging the value of AI-driven systems on the battlefield, Hinton said he remains concerned about the technology’s role in modern warfare, calling it “disruption.”
The fighting in Ukraine has inspired visions of future warfare, including machine gun turrets that select their own targets and flying drones that hunt down humans. By removing human direction and decision-making, AI offers the potential to kill more people, faster.
As AI capabilities continue to evolve, the public needs to remain involved in the development of the technology, Hinton said.
“The only thing that will restrain these big AI companies is public pressure,” Hinton said, adding, “I believe my mission is to educate the public so that they understand not only the good things about AI, but also the dangers of AI.”
Hinton was not available for further comment, his assistant told Business Insider in an email.
For the past decade, employees at technology companies like Google and Microsoft have opposed defense-related projects involving AI.
Last week, President Donald Trump signed a directive aimed at accelerating the development and use of AI for national security purposes.
The presidential memorandum on national security states that AI “will be one of the most transformative technologies for national security in U.S. history.”
“When properly deployed, AI can help protect warfighters in peacetime and on the battlefield, enable precision operations with minimal harm to civilians, and ensure that the United States continues to maintain technological superiority over adversaries and strategic competitors,” the memo said.
The Trump administration is promoting the liberal use of AI for national security purposes. The Pentagon took the unprecedented action of labeling the American company Anthropic as a supply chain risk after the company requested that Claude’s AI not be used in autonomous weapons, and destroyed its wartime civilian harm reduction office.
If you enjoyed this article, follow Business Insider on Yahoo.
