The AI Military Complex: Companies, India and Defence Technology

The AI military complex is the network of defence ministries, armed services, public-sector manufacturers, private contractors, startups and research instituti…

SAGE Becomes the First Real-Time Air-Defence Computer Network

Following the Soviet Union's first atomic-bomb test in 1949, the US Air Force turned to MIT's Lincoln Laboratory to build a continental air-defence system. The Semi-Auto…

DARPA Launches a Ten-Year Push for Machine Intelligence

In 1983, DARPA announced a ten-year Strategic Computing Initiative backed by roughly $300 million in initial funding, targeting expert systems and chip-design advances.…

The DARPA Urban Challenge Matures Autonomous Navigation

Building on the 2004 and 2005 Grand Challenges, DARPA's 2007 Urban Challenge required autonomous vehicles to navigate a simulated city environment, merging and obeying t…

India Constitutes an AI Task Force and Publishes #AIforAll

In February 2018, the Ministry of Defence's Department of Defence Production constituted a task force on AI for national security, chaired by N. Chandrasekaran, reportin…

India Launches iDEX to Fund Defence Startups

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) on April 12, 2018, the Ministry of Defence's flagship programme for engaging startups, MS…

India Creates the Defence AI Council and Defence AI Project Agency

Acting on the 2018 task force's recommendations, the Ministry of Defence created the Defence Artificial Intelligence Council (DAIC), chaired by the Defence Minister, and…

The Pentagon Adopts Five AI Ethics Principles

On February 28, 2020, the US Department of Defense formally adopted five ethical principles for military AI -- Responsible, Equitable, Traceable, Reliable and Governable…

India Unveils 75 AI-Enabled Defence Products

On July 11, 2022, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launched 75 AI-enabled defence products at the first-ever 'AI in Defence' Symposium and Exhibition, representing four ye…

The UN General Assembly Votes on Autonomous Weapons; India Declines to Support…

On December 22, 2023, the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution 78/241 on lethal autonomous weapons, 152-4-11. India was among the four states voting against it, citing…

NATO Revises Its AI Strategy for the Generative-AI Era

NATO published a revised AI Strategy on July 10, 2024, updating its 2021 original to address generative AI, reaffirming six Principles of Responsible Use -- Lawfulness,…

US Autonomy Contracts Surge as UN Treaty Talks Remain Deadlocked

Through 2025-2026, US contractors Anduril, Shield AI and Palantir reported major awards including a reported $20 billion US Army contract and Air Force autonomy deployme…