US Military to Explore Ethics and Challenges of AI in Future Operations: ASIMOV Project Briefing
The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is set to hold a briefing later this month to discuss the forthcoming Autonomy Standards and Ideals with Military Operational Values (ASIMOV) project. The aim of the ASIMOV program is to examine the ethical and technical challenges involved in employing artificial intelligence (AI) and machine autonomy in future military operations.
This initiative comes in response to the rapid advancement of AI and machine autonomy technologies, which necessitates the development of frameworks to evaluate both the technical and ethical performance of autonomous systems. The ASIMOV program, however, is focused on creating benchmarks to measure the ethical difficulty of future military machine autonomy, rather than developing actual autonomous systems or algorithms for such systems.
A fundamental objective of the ASIMOV program is to create a common ethical autonomy language that can be used by the test community to assess the ethical complexity of specific military scenarios, as well as the ability of autonomous systems to act ethically within those scenarios. ASIMOV performers will be responsible for developing prototype modeling environments that explore military scenarios related to machine automation and its associated ethical challenges. If successful, the program will establish some of the standards against which future autonomous systems can be evaluated.
The ASIMOV Proposers Day will serve as an opportunity to introduce industry experts, academia, and government entities to the vision and goals of the ASIMOV program. It will also provide insights into the mechanics and milestones of a DARPA program, encouraging collaboration and partnership among potential bidders.
During the ASIMOV Proposers Day, attendees will have the chance to deliver brief lightning talks of up to 60 seconds, highlighting their interests and capabilities for potential teaming. Additionally, participants will be able to participate in one-on-one sessions with the ASIMOV program manager.
To attend the ASIMOV Proposers Day briefings, interested parties are required to register online no later than January 22, 2024. Registration is free, and the event will take place at 675 N. Randolph St. in Arlington, Va.
This project signifies the U.S. military’s commitment to exploring the ethical dimensions and technical challenges associated with leveraging AI and machine autonomy in future military operations. By establishing standardized benchmarks and evaluating the ethical difficulty of specific scenarios, the ASIMOV program aims to ensure that autonomous systems act in an ethical manner while performing critical military tasks.
