By Rowenna Hoskin | Science Editor
A US panel called the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, led by the former Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt concluded that the US should refuse to agree to ban the use or development of autonomous weapons powered by artificial intelligence (AI) software, a government-appointed panel has said in a draft report for Congress. 
The panel discussed technological advancement and AI for national security purposes for two days. ItÔÇÖs vice-chairman, Robert Work, a former deputy secretary of defence said that autonomous weapons are expected to make less mistakes than a human in battle – meaning casualties will be reduced as target misidentification will no longer be subject to human error.┬á
ÔÇ£It is a moral imperative to at least pursue this hypothesis,ÔÇØ Work said.┬á
Amongst the controversial discussion, anxieties concerning human rights around warfare were raised. A coalition of non-governmental organisations have called for a treaty banning ÔÇ£killer robotsÔÇØ for eight years, saying that human control is necessary to judge an attack’s proportionality and assign blame for war crimes.┬á
Thirty countries, including Brazil and Pakistan want this ban implemented and it has been a subject of the United Nations meetings since 2014. 
Concern has increased over recent years as research has found AI bias and examples of itÔÇÖs software abuse.┬á
The panel acknowledged the risks of autonomous weapons. A member from Microsoft warned that the pressure to build machines that react quickly could escalate conflicts rather than minimise.  
The panel agreed that nuclear warhead launches should only be decided by humans. 
Mary Wareham, coordinator of Campaign to Stop Killer Robots, said the commission’s ÔÇ£focus on the need to compete with similar investments made by China and Russia ÔǪ only serves to encourage arms races.ÔÇØ┬á
These recommendations are not binding and the commission is not due to release its final report to Congress until March. 
Whatever decision the US congress makes, it is clear that AI will continue to increase within our technocratic society. The public will have to remain patient to see whether AI breaches the boundaries of the military domain and into the sphere of dystopian fiction. 
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