Worthy Christian News > US News > US Firms Rush To Rollout AI For Military (Worthy News In-Depth)

US Firms Rush To Rollout AI For Military (Worthy News In-Depth)

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

WASHINGTON (Worthy News) – Artificial intelligence (AI) developer OpenAI and high-tech military manufacturer Anduril Industries are rushing to develop AI technology for the U.S. military amid concerns that China will win the race in this field.

The two companies said OpenAI, the creator of the online AI ‘assistant’ ChatGPT, will provide additional capabilities to Anduril’s drones, detection unit, and military software.

A key part of the deal is to improve Anduril technology used to detect and shoot down drones that threaten American forces and those of allies, the statement said.

The Pentagon buys these tools the military start-up to help counter the proliferation of cheap drones on battlefields all over the world.

After an Iranian-made drone killed three U.S. service members at a base in Jordan this year, the U.S. military established that the drone probably had not been detected and that no weapon existed on the base to destroy it.

Iran is a close ally of China, which is striving to become the world’s second military power.

“Our partnership with Anduril will help ensure OpenAl technology protects U.S. military personnel and will help the national security community understand and responsibly use this technology to keep our citizens safe and free,” Sam Altman, OpenAl’s chief executive officer, said in a statement.

‘PIVOTAL MOMENT’

The arrangement comes at what the two companies call a “pivotal moment” in the accelerating race between Washington and Beijing to dominate Al for military purposes. “If the United States cedes ground, we risk losing the technological edge that has underpinned our national security for decades,” the companies warned in a joint statement.

Anduril and OpenAl said the partnership would focus on developing and “responsibly” deploying Al for national security missions at a time of global concerns about the technology.

Dutch and South Korean officials confirmed that a United Nations General Assembly committee adopted the U.N.’s first-ever resolution on AI’s “responsible” military use last month.

“The Netherlands wants better global agreements on the military use of AI” amid concerns the technology could otherwise lead to a global arms race and deaths, the Dutch government said in a statement published by Worthy News in November.

“That is why we, together with South Korea, submitted the very first resolution on this topic to the United Nations. This resolution was adopted on 6 November 2024,” the government added.

The Netherlands and South Korea initiated the resolution at a time when both nations were among the global leaders in the chip production-related industry.

The calls on responsible use of AI also come as the head of Britain’s armed forces warned Wednesday that the world faces a “third nuclear age,” with China posing a significant threat to the West.

NUCLEAR ARSENAL

Admiral Tony Radakin, Chief of the Defense Staff, said China’s nuclear arsenal is expanding more quickly than any other country and is set to be on a par with the United States and Russia by 2030.

With AI rapidly spreading, China may learn even faster than the U.S. how to maintain a military advantage, experts fear.

However, contracts with the U.S. military have been controversial with employees at consumer tech companies, including sparking protests inside Alphabet-owned tech giant Google in 2018.

Yet, in a turbulent world, the Al industry has recently shown more openness to such deals.

In November, OpenAl rival Anthropic announced a partnership with firms Palantir Technologies and Amazon to provide U.S. intelligence and defense agencies access to its technologies.

Tech giant Meta Platforms reportedly opened up its Al models to U.S. defense agencies and contractors last month as the world’s battlefields increasingly turn into electronic warfare.