China is designing AI-enabled nuclear submarines that can think for themselves

By Nicole DiGiose, content editor

China is working to update its old computer systems on nuclear submarines with artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the potential thinking skills of commanding officers, according to the South China Morning Post . A submarine with AI-augmented brainpower could give China’s navy an upper hand in undersea battles while also pushing AI technology applications to new levels.

The submarine’s system has the ability to identify threats faster and more accurately than a human crew. Image source: Pixabay.

The idea behind this advancement is to not just give China an edge over other countries and free up commanding officers, but to eliminate human error altogether. In the past, nuclear submarines were almost exclusively controlled by naval personnel. But with AI technology catching up to the smarts of the human brain, along with machine learning, these new submarines will be able to gather knowledge, improve skills, and develop new strategies without human intervention.

Working the system

As for the submarine’s system, it works similarly to a human brain and tries to replicate it, although compared to a human crew, it has the ability to identify threats faster and more accurately. This in itself is why Chinese scientists now believe that AI is ready to replace most of the human-made decisions.

The data being fed to the submarine will come from the Chinese Navy’s observation networks, the sensors on the submarine, and daily interactions with the crew. What’s more, a neural network will reinforce machine learning.

Machine uprising?

According to an anonymous researcher involved with the program who spoke to the South China Morning Post, the AI-infused system must produce basic demands but also be compact and compatible with the submarine’s existing computer systems. “It is like putting an elephant into a shoebox,” said the researcher. “What the military cares most about are not fancy features. What they care about most is that the thing does not screw up amid the heat of a battle.”

Deep-water-exploration scientist and researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Acoustics, Zhu Min, told Newsweek that AI weaponry was the next step for China’s military but warned that the systems must be programmed carefully to safeguard from a runaway submarine with enough nuclear arsenals to destroy a continent.

“This is definitely a risk that the authorities should consider when introducing AI to a sub,” said Min.

On the other hand, computer science professor at Beijing’s Tsinghua University, Deng Zhidong, told the South China Morning Post that there’s zero chance of a machine uprising, at least with the technology that’s currently available.

“An AI-powered machine is still a machine,” said Zhidong. “It does not have a life. You can shut it down and shift to manual anytime. It will be the same on a nuclear submarine.”

Considered to be one of those most sophisticated machines during war, a nuclear submarine can take more than 20 years to develop from an idea into a completed product.

What are your thoughts on China’s AI-enabled nuclear submarines? Leave a comment below.