Pentagon is testing whether AI can plan response to an all-out war

The United States military has begun tests to see if generative artificial intelligence (AI) can assist when planning responses to potential global conflicts or provide faster access to internal information.

On July 6, Bloomberg reported the U.S. Department of Defense, or the Pentagon, and unnamed allies are, for the first time, testing five AI large language models (LLMs) in experiments run by the digital and AI office at the Pentagon.

Information about which LLMs are undergoing testing is unavailabl, but AI startup Scale AI reportedly came forward to say its “Donovan” model is one of the five.

Air Force Colonel Matthew Strohmeyer told Bloomberg that an initial test of an LLM was “highly successful […] Very fast” and the Pentagon is “learning that this is possible for us to do,” but added it’s not “ready for primetime right now.”

One test explained by Strohmeyer saw an AI model deliver a request for information in 10 minutes, a blistering speed, as requests often take days and involve multiple personnel.

The LLMs have already been given classified operational information to generate responses on real-world matters. The tests see if the models could help plan a response to a potential escalation of the already tense military situation with China.

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While the tests are set to only run until July 26, the U.S. military has been studying AI’s potential capabilities in warfare for some time.

In May, the United Kingdom government agency, the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, hosted the U.S. and Australia for the first joint trial testing AI-enabled military drones to track targets.

The agency said the trial “achieved world firsts,” such as retraining the AI models live while in flight and interchanging the models between participants. It added that it is “looking to rapidly drive these technologies into military capabilities.”

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