The United Nations is launching a new forum on the use of artificial intelligence in the military. The effort comes from the UN Institute for Disarmament Research, known as UNIDIR.
The forum will launch on Thursday. UNIDIR says it is the first and only forum of its kind within the UN system.
Robin Geiss, director of the Geneva-based institute, spoke to reporters at UN headquarters in New York on Tuesday. He warned that “the margin for human judgment is increasingly narrow, including in the nuclear domain.”
AI’s Growing Role on the Battlefield
Geiss said AI is already widely used in military operations. It now helps with intelligence analysis, target identification, drone operations, and cyber attacks.
He asked journalists a direct question: “Are we going to let machines target and kill human beings?” He said AI was “on track to crowding out human decision-making” in the military.
According to Geiss, AI is speeding up battlefield operations. It shortens the time between finding a target and striking it, and lets forces hit more targets each day.
He said many of these AI systems are hard to understand from the outside. This raises the risk of errors, miscalculation, and unintended escalation.
Geiss said it is hard to know how close the world is to machines acting outside human control. Because AI is spreading into early warning systems and reconnaissance, it is difficult to say when control is truly lost.
He added that as AI tools get easier to use, armed groups outside government control will be able to run more advanced operations.
Major Powers Share Concerns
Geiss said global competition over AI is a “serious obstacle” to setting rules. But he said worries about AI are now shared across political lines, including among major powers.
He pointed to a September proposal from the United States for an AI notification system with China. It would let the two countries warn each other about AI incidents that could threaten national security.
AI risks were also a major topic at the UN’s annual high-level meeting last month. The UN Secretary-General has called for a legally binding treaty on lethal autonomous weapons.
The new forum is part of UNIDIR’s Center of Excellence on AI, Peace and Security. The center was set up this summer with funding from the US, Russia, China, Britain, and France.
The forum will focus on three areas. The first is a set of practical, voluntary guidelines for companies that design and build military AI tools.
The second is an “AI security lexicon.” It aims to clarify terms like autonomy, safety, and security, which different groups currently use in different ways.
The third is the misuse of AI by armed groups. Geiss said these groups already use AI for planning, carrying out operations, and logistics.
UNIDIR will hold talks this week with defense technology companies, software developers, subcontractors, and investors. They will work alongside governments, civil society, academics, and other experts.
“The urgent issue of AI in the military domain will certainly no longer be allowed to linger in the shadows,” Geiss said. The forum is scheduled to launch on Thursday.
