Is Artificial Intelligence Critical to National Defense?

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The UK’s Ministry of Defense envisions the future as a world where artificial intelligence (AI) is critical to national defense. A new Joint Concept Note entitled Human and Machine Teaming suggests that the government should build a registry of security-cleared artificial intelligence and robotics experts, who can be called-up should Queen and country ever require their services. The proposed register is much the same as the cybersecurity experts that GCHQ can call upon.
The document focuses on the challenges and opportunities of robotic and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and how to achieve military advantage through human-machine teams. It also laments the UK’s technical skills shortages.
With the development of both AI and robotics shifting from the public sector to the private sector, ‘civil commercial investment in AI and robotic technologies, and the recruitment of subject matter experts’, is vastly outstripping the resources available to nation states. The best systems thus begin and remain in the civilian sector, making military access to AI and robotics a challenge.
The defense industry can’t compete with technology giants like Google and Microsoft that are keen to bring AI and robotics experts on board and keep them there, through recruitment drives, M&A investments, excellent rates of pay etc, according to theinquirer.net.
The MoD suggests to make sure that its own experts are proper experts who can genuinely understand what they’re being told by contractors. This is because the MoD, and defense departments worldwide, have to buy AI and other technical systems from commercial companies.