Anthropic, the Pentagon, and AI Use in the Military

Just how are powerful AI models being used in warfare overseas? In this episode of “Galaxy Brain,” Charlie Warzel sits down with Wired senior writer Will Knight to discuss the rise of autonomous weapons. From the origins of Project Maven to the recent falling-out between Anthropic and the Department of Defense, they trace what’s happening as artificial intelligence moves from summarizing documents to informing decisions on the battlefield. How do these weapons work? What are the safeguards? Who decides what values get baked into these models? As autonomous systems become harder to avoid, where exactly is the line between human judgment and machine decision making? Warzel and Knight help explain how the Pentagon and Silicon Valley are more entangled than ever and where warfare goes from here. This episode of Galaxy Brain was produced by Renee Klahr and engineered by Dave Grein. Our theme is by Rob Smierciak. Claudine Ebeid is the executive producer of Atlantic audio, and Andrea Valdez is our managing editor. Subscribe to the “Galaxy Brain” newsletter: https://www.theatlantic.com/newslette... Subscribe to the “Galaxy Brain” podcast on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Subscribe to the “Galaxy Brain” podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/542WHgd... Follow The Atlantic on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theatlantic... Get more from your favorite Atlantic voices when you subscribe. You’ll enjoy unlimited access to Pulitzer-winning journalism, from clear-eyed analysis and insight on breaking news to fascinating explorations of our world. Atlantic subscribers also get access to exclusive subscriber audio in Apple Podcasts. Subscribe today at https://accounts.theatlantic.com/prod... 00:00 Introduction 02:12 Will Knight Joins 05:57 How The Military Is Using AI 09:39 Difference Between Military and Commercial AI 13:18 Fully Autonomous Weapons 16:10 Anthropic Vs. The Pentagon 20:38 Iran War and AI Concern 23:23 Safeguards and Conflicting Ideologies 29:36 Who Gets To Decide AI's Morality? 33:35 Arms Race And What Next 35:20 Conclusion