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The US intelligence community, global security and AI : from secret intelligence to smart spying
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Moran, Christopher R., Burton, Joe and Christou, George (2023) The US intelligence community, global security and AI : from secret intelligence to smart spying. Journal of Global Security Studies, 8 (2). ogad005. doi:10.1093/jogss/ogad005 ISSN 2057-3189.
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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1093/jogss/ogad005
Abstract
This article examines the ways in which the US intelligence community is leveraging the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for national security purposes. Drawing on declassified intelligence records, it contends that this community has been fascinated by AI for decades. This is important to acknowledge because this historical context has shaped contemporary projects and thinking within the community. It has also given the US first-mover advantage, establishing precedents that other global actors need to comply with, negotiate or resist. The article advances three arguments. One, the community has long recognised that it needs to collaborate with the tech sector on AI. However, these relationships bring certain challenges since the sector is a curious compound of ideologies and interests. Two, while the community was initially attracted to the data processing advantages of AI, to help human analysts to overcome ‘data smog’, today it has broadened its focus to consider how AI can improve all stages of the intelligence cycle. Three: while many voices feverishly herald the transformative potential of AI in the global security environment, we argue instead that US agencies will not be able to exploit the full potential of AI and thus talk of an intelligence revolution is premature. This is because of national and international rules on data collection and retention but also because of cultural tensions within the global AI ecosystem. The discussion will appeal to scholars and practitioners interested in the impact of emerging technologies on national security processes and decisionmaking and, more broadly, global security.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||||||
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Subjects: | U Military Science > U Military Science (General) | ||||||||
Divisions: | Faculty of Social Sciences > Politics and International Studies | ||||||||
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | National security, Artificial intelligence, National security -- United States, United States. -- National Security Agency, Intelligence service -- United States, Security, International | ||||||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Journal of Global Security Studies | ||||||||
Publisher: | Oxford University Press | ||||||||
ISSN: | 2057-3189 | ||||||||
Official Date: | June 2023 | ||||||||
Dates: |
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Volume: | 8 | ||||||||
Number: | 2 | ||||||||
Article Number: | ogad005 | ||||||||
DOI: | 10.1093/jogss/ogad005 | ||||||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||||||
Access rights to Published version: | Open Access (Creative Commons) | ||||||||
Date of first compliant deposit: | 17 February 2023 | ||||||||
Date of first compliant Open Access: | 18 July 2023 | ||||||||
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