US and China must set rules for autonomous weapons

These incidents, involving human pilots, underscore the potential for escalation as artificial intelligence transforms the battlefield. The rapid advancement of AI in warfare has spurred demand for arms control and raised concerns over the ethics and governance of Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS).

Recognizing these challenges, a Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) under the UN Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW) has been established to examine LAWS and develop binding international regulations. UN Secretary-General António Guterres has set a 2026 deadline for member states to put forward concrete rules. However, the chair of the GGE has warned that the group's work risks being outpaced by technological developments unless significant progress is made soon.

Definitions of LAWS vary, with some systems capable of autonomously identifying targets but requiring human intervention for engagement, while others can autonomously engage targets after human selection. The GGE defines LAWS as systems that can "select and engage a target, without intervention by a human user." The US government shares a similar definition. However, the precise degree of human control over target selection and engagement remains a key point of debate. The first reported use of LAWS to target humans occurred in 2020, when a Turkish-manufactured Kargu-2 drone was allegedly used autonomously in Libya.