Watch: "Army of None" Book Launch Event

Militaries around the world are racing to build robotic systems with increasing autonomy. What will happen when a Predator drone has as much autonomy as a Google car? Should machines be given the power to make life and death decisions in war? Paul Scharre, a former Army Ranger and Pentagon official, talked about his new book, Army of None: Autonomous Weapons and the Future of War. Scharre explored the technology behind autonomous weapons and the legal, moral, ethical, and strategic dimensions of this evolving technology. Paul Scharre is a Senior Fellow and Director of the Technology and National Security Program at the Center for a New American Security.

View photos from the event.

This Event Featured:

• Opening remarks by Robert O. Work, former Deputy Secretary of Defense and an outspoken advocate for U.S. military dominance in autonomy and artificial intelligence
• A presentation by Paul Scharre on the book
• A panel discussion with Mr. Scharre; Steve Goose, Executive Director of the Arms Division at Human Rights Watch and co-founder of the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots; and Dr. Rebecca Crootof, Executive Director of the Information Society Project at Yale Law School. Their discussion will come on the heels of the United Nations meeting on autonomous weapons only two weeks earlier in April.
• Reception and book signing

Agenda:

5:30 – 6:00 pm  Cocktail reception
6:00 – 6:10 pm  Opening remarks by Robert O. Work, former Deputy Secretary of Defense (livestream begins)
6:10 – 6:30 pm  Presentation by Paul Scharre on Army of None
6:30 – 7:15 pm  Panel discussion on autonomous weapons with Paul Scharre, Steve Goose, and Dr. Rebecca Crootof (livestream concludes)
7:15 – 8:00 pm  Book signing and reception