Author Archive
Patrick Tucker
Science & Technology Editor
Patrick Tucker is science and technology editor for Defense One. He’s also the author of The Naked Future: What Happens in a World That Anticipates Your Every Move? (Current, 2014). Previously, Tucker was deputy editor for The Futurist for nine years. Tucker has written about emerging technology in Slate, The Sun, MIT Technology Review, Wilson Quarterly, The American Legion Magazine, BBC News Magazine, Utne Reader, and elsewhere.
Threats
Pentagon leaders love agentic AI. But it’s giving cyber criminals nation-state-like powers
As new tools change cybersecurity, just moving faster won’t be enough.
- Patrick Tucker
Science & Tech
Pentagon seeks smarter, self-organizing drones as autonomous-warfare budget is poised to skyrocket
Uncrewed weapons actually require a lot of people. New DARPA projects aim to overcome that.
- Patrick Tucker
Exclusive
Science & Tech
Former head of ‘Pentagon’s think tank’ joins Anthropic
The strategy expert calls adaptation to AI a "civilizational" challenge.
- Patrick Tucker
Science & Tech
SOCOM adding AI, autonomy ‘at every level,’ commander says
Fast adoption illustrates smaller organizations’ ability to harness disruptive tech.
- Patrick Tucker
Threats
The Pentagon replicated a Ukrainian-style drone attack in Florida. Now it’s changing its counter-drone strategy
Several things—from the players to the technology—set the exercise apart from previous experiments.
- Patrick Tucker
Science & Tech
Navy scientists seek tech breakthroughs in areas that companies ignore
With private-sector R&D funding rising, the Office of Naval Research is adjusting to new budget priorities.
- Patrick Tucker
Science & Tech
Why the US can’t copy Ukraine’s robot navy
Command and control will remain a human endeavor—even as the Pacific fills with robo-boats.
- Patrick Tucker
Business
New test range opens for the startup-war era
The 400,000-acre site in Georgia focuses on bringing new companies, new tech, and operators together.
- Patrick Tucker
Science & Tech
Russians will surrender to robots. Russian robots won’t.
After a historic first, communications and navigation still obstruct the future for roboticized ground assault.
- Patrick Tucker
Threats
Orbán’s loss won’t stop Russian influence campaigns, but it shows they’re beatable
The Hungarian strongman’s electoral defeat exposes the growth, and limits, of Russian hybrid-warfare tactics.
- Patrick Tucker
Science & Tech
‘Hybrid constellations’ are making it hard for militaries to hide
Vantor plans to combine high- and low-resolution space imagery in its satellite fleet.
- Patrick Tucker
Policy
Spy agencies eye new Anthropic AI model that spots cyber flaws
Claude Mythos Preview has found vulnerabilities in "every major operating system and web browser," company officials say.
- David DiMolfetta, Alexandra Kelley and Patrick Tucker
Science & Tech
As aircraft losses mount, Pentagon wants a software fix to see through the fog of war
The Defense Department is looking to update how older planes see each other and absorb data.
- Patrick Tucker
Policy
Budget would cut Pentagon research by one-third. Can industry compensate?
Tech firms are more willing to spend their own money on R&D.
- Patrick Tucker
Threats
‘It’s drones fighting drones’: Ukrainian officer offers inside look at roboticized war
A counter-drone leader describes front lines where humans hide, machines collaborate, and survival depends on adapting in real time.
- Patrick Tucker
Science & Tech
Startup debuts agentic AI assistant for war
As the Pentagon eyes agentic AI, a veteran-founded company introduces a tool that puts the military first.
- Patrick Tucker
Exclusive
Business
Former Trump advisor joins board of Ukraine-focused drone tech company Powerus
For Ukraine, co-production and commercial ties offer a “path forward” amid stalled diplomacy.
- Patrick Tucker
Threats
Iran is adopting Russian drone tactics, Ukrainian troops say
“Iran, North Korea, China, and Russia—that's all one war,” visiting military delegation tells D.C. audience.
- Patrick Tucker
Science & Tech
The real danger of military AI isn’t killer robots; it’s worse human judgement
As Pentagon rushes to deploy LLM-based tools, research suggests they can undermine human thought and communication.
- Patrick Tucker
Threats
US intelligence elevates AI as a top global threat in new report
Annual assessment of Office of the Director of National Intelligence notes AI's use in combat, economic competitiveness—but skips disinformation.
- Patrick Tucker