Killer drone: first possible case of autonomous weapons used to kill in Libya

The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists considers that a Turkish-made drone could be the first known case of autonomous weapons based on artificial intelligence used to kill.

Specifically, this publication known to publish annually the report on “Doomsday” and which deals with the assessment of nuclear threats, climate change and disruptive technologies, refers to a recent report by the United Nations Group of Experts on Libya.

In this report, it is cited that the drone STM Cargo-2 – a Turkish-made autonomous weapon – may have “pursued and compromised at a distance” retreating soldiers loyal to Libyan General Khalifa Haftar.

Throughout the year, the UN-recognized government of national accord pushed back the forces of the general in the capital Tripoli, indicating that he had gained the upper hand in the Libyan conflict, but the Kargu-2 means may -to be something even more important in the world: “a new chapter of autonomous weapons, in which they are used to fight and kill human beings based on artificial intelligence.”

The Kargu is a “ranger” drone that can use machine learning-based object classification to select and attack targets, with swarm capabilities being developed to allow 20 drones to work together. The UN report calls the Kargu-2 a deadly autonomous weapon.

Its maker, STM, touts the weapon’s “anti-personnel” capabilities in a video showing a model of Kargu diving towards a target amid a group of mannequins.

If someone is killed in an attack of this nature, it would likely represent a first known historical case of the use of autonomous AI-based weapons to kill.

Many people, including the late Steven Hawking and Elon Musk, have said they want to ban these types of weapons, claiming that they cannot distinguish between civilians and soldiers, while others say they will be essential in countering threats such as drone swarms. This can actually reduce the risk to civilians as they will make fewer mistakes than human-guided weapon systems, the newsletter comments in an article authored by Zachary Kallenborn.

Europa Press