New Bipartisan Bill Would Prevent AI From Launching Nuclear Weapons

Bipartisan Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Block AI from Launching Nuclear Weapons

A group of bipartisan lawmakers is taking action to prevent the Pentagon from using artificial intelligence (AI) to launch nuclear weapons. The Block Nuclear Launch by Autonomous Artificial Intelligence Act aims to safeguard the nuclear command and control process from future policy changes that might allow AI to make nuclear launch and targeting decisions.

Reps. Ken Buck (R-Colo.), Don Beyer (D-Va.), and Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) and Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) introduced the legislation to both chambers of Congress on April 26.

“While U.S. military use of AI can be appropriate for enhancing national security purposes, use of AI for deploying nuclear weapons without a human chain of command and control is reckless, dangerous, and should be prohibited,” Buck said in a prepared statement.

The bill would codify the Pentagon’s existing policy on AI and nuclear weapons by mandating that no federal funds could be used for the launch of any nuclear weapon by an automated system without meaningful human control.

Meaningful human control, according to the bill, would include human decision-making over the selection and engagement of nuclear targets and the time, location, and manner of such use.

AI No Substitute for ‘Human Judgment’

The Pentagon’s 2022 Nuclear Posture Review maintains that its current policy is to “maintain a human ‘in the loop’ for all actions critical to informing and executing decisions by the President to initiate and terminate nuclear weapon employment.”

That policy appears informal, however, and doesn’t apply to non-nuclear autonomous lethal systems that, despite popular misconception, are not prohibited by the Pentagon.

“AI technology is developing at an extremely rapid pace,” Lieu said. “While we all try to grapple with the pace at which AI is accelerating, the future of AI and its role in society remains unclear. AI can never be a substitute for human judgment when it comes to launching nuclear weapons.”

Risk of Nuclear Conflict With China Escalates

Since the Cold War, the United States has maintained a number of second-strike nuclear capabilities on what is called “launch-on-warning” status.

This means that the nation will retaliate with nuclear weapons if it detects an incoming attack. However, the risk of nuclear conflict with China is escalating, and the use of AI in nuclear weapons could lead to catastrophic consequences.

• The bill would prohibit the use of AI in launching nuclear weapons.
• It would mandate meaningful human control over the selection and engagement of nuclear targets.
• The future of AI and its role in society remains unclear.

Let’s hope that this bill will prevent the use of AI in nuclear weapons and ensure that human beings, not machines, have the final say over the most critical and sensitive military decisions.