Army of None

Autonomous Weapons and the Future of War

By: Paul Scharre

Narrated by: Roger Wayne

Paul Scharre, a Pentagon defense expert and former U.S. Army Ranger, explores what it would mean to give machines authority over the ultimate decision of life or death. Scharre's far-ranging investigation examines the emergence of autonomous weapons, the movement to ban them, and the legal and ethical issues surrounding their use. He spotlights artificial intelligence in military technology, spanning decades of innovation from German noise-seeking Wren torpedoes in World War II - antecedents of today's homing missiles - to autonomous cyber weapons, submarine-hunting robot ships, and robot tank armies.

Through interviews with defense experts, ethicists, psychologists, and activists, Scharre surveys what challenges might face "centaur warfighters" on future battlefields, which will combine human and machine cognition. We've made tremendous technological progress in the past few decades, but we have also glimpsed the terrifying mishaps that can result from complex automated systems - such as when advanced F-22 fighter jets experienced a computer meltdown the first time they flew over the International Date Line.

©2018 Paul Scharre (P)2018 Tantor

Informative on a Narrow Subject

The book presented the current thoughts from a variety of professions on the future of autonomous military machines, and autonomous machines in general.

I found the passing philosophy clueless, further reaffirming my observation that humans are still universally clueless, but that is besides the point (though it was the reason I picked up the book, to further test that observation).

Robots, weapons, and AI oh my!

This book was an excellent place to start for someone just getting into the whole autonomous weapon and AI discussion. The book is well researched and organized. It draws upon historical examples as well as current policies and issues. The bottom line is that this discussion is critical and Paul Scharre has made a significant contribution to the conversation. I have a much better idea of the murky way ahead, a little less dread of "skynet", and a little more hope for the better angels of humanity. But there will be those who use autonomous weapons, however defined, for nefarious purposes and this book offers some excellent options to counter that. Paul Scharre writes well and offers all sides of the discussion. His work should be read by any and all looking to better understand autonomy in war.

Both sides of the story

I thought this book gave a very even and detailed view of the pros and cons of robotics and autonomous features in future products.

Good presentation

The past, present and future of autonomous is explained. Plants the seed for further discussions on ethical, technological and military implications

Fascinating but kind of frightening too...

I found this book on Bill Gates' 2018 book list, and it was fascinating but kind of frightening too! Most of the book provides a deep dive on current / cutting edge / future military technology, and explores the evolution and inevitability of more and more autonomous weaponry. Obviously, autonomy creates some ethical conundrums that deserve careful thought, but as many reviews agree, the book doesn't do as good of a job covering these at the end of the book, but I would not deter you from learning a lot on this topic. Skip the end of the book, if you want, but don't skip the rest.