Student sensor operators from the 6th Reconnaissance Squadron practice tactical operations during an MQ-1 Predator simulator mission.

Student sensor operators from the 6th Reconnaissance Squadron practice tactical operations during an MQ-1 Predator simulator mission. Senior Airman BreeAnn Sachs/U.S. Air Force

Pentagon Wants to Pair Troops with Machines to Deter Russia, China

More than a year in the works, Pentagon leaders are betting an ambitious effort to pair soldiers with machines to give the American military an edge on the battlefield of the future.

SIMI VALLEY, CALIF. – Pentagon leaders believe pairing soldiers with machines in combat will give American troops an edge on the battlefield of the future.

The ambitious effort is the centerpiece of what the Pentagon is calling the “third offset,” a strategy that seeks to deter countries like Russia and China from waging war against the U.S.

Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work, who is leading the offset project for the Pentagon, touted what he called “human-machine collaboration and combat teaming” at the annual Reagan National Defense Forum, a gathering of American national security leaders.

“The way we will go after human-machine collaboration is allowing the machine to help humans make better decisions, faster,” Work said.

The Pentagon’s “offset strategy” makes investments in new technology that defense leaders say will “offset,” or neutralize, the technological advancements of other foes or nations.

“This third offset … is really focused on the advanced capabilities that Russia and China can bring to bear,” Work said. “The whole purpose is to convince them never to try to cross swords with us conventionally.”

At the center of the effort are learning machines, which will “literally operate at the speed of light,” Work said. These computers will help solve problems, such has how to respond to a missile traveling at six times the speed of sound.

Work said the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is one of these types of machines. “The F-35 is not a fighter plane,” Work said. “It is a flying sensor computer that sucks in an enormous amount of data, correlates it, analyzes it and displays it to the pilot on his helmet.”

Even though the F-35 has been criticized for not being able to maneuver as well as older fighter jets and has had well-noted problems in its development, the aircraft’s high-tech computers and sensors, Work said, will allow it to outperform its predecessors.

“We are absolutely confident that F-35 will be a war winner,” he said. “It’s because it is using the machine to make the human make better decisions.”

Work also pointed to “assisted human operations” and wearable electronics, which give troops access to combat apps as another game changer. “I’m telling you right now, 10 years from now, if the first person through a breach isn’t a fricken robot, shame on us.”

Defense Secretary Ashton Carter announced in August the Pentagon would invest in electronic components that can bend.

Humans and machines are already working together on the battlefield within the U.S. “global counterterrorism network,” which uses people, unmanned drones, computers and special operations forces to hunt militants, Work said.

Unlike the previous offsets, the fielding of tactical nuclear weapons and precision-guided bombs and missiles, which deterred war and gave the American military in some cases four decades of advantages over adversaries, this new technology probably won’t provide an edge that long, Work said.

Russia is challenging “our capacity to innovate and change,” said Carter, during a luncheon address to the audience largely made up of lawmakers, industry, and Pentagon officials.

“[I]n the face of Russia’s provocations and China’s rise, we must embrace innovative approaches to protect the United States and strengthen that international order,” Carter said.

Russia’s saber rattling has prompted a major shift of late in way the American military is looking at a future. Top uniformed officials have said nuclear-armed Moscow poses the greatest threat to the U.S., not Islamic State militants, who despite an international airstrike campaign, still hold large portions of land in Iraq and Syria and have a presence in other countries across Northern Africa.

“We do not seek to make Russia an enemy,” Carter said. “But make no mistake; the United States will defend our interests, our allies, the principled international order, and the positive future it affords us all. We’re taking a strong and balanced approach to deter Russia’s aggression, and to help reduce the vulnerability of allies and partners.”

As such, the U.S. military is “adapting our operational posture and contingency plans as we – on our own and with allies – work to deter Russia’s aggression, and to help reduce the vulnerability of allies and partners,” Carter said.

The Pentagon is “making a number of moves in response, many but not all of which I can describe in this forum,” Carter said alluding to classified battle plans and weapon projects. It is also “updating and advancing our operational plans for deterrence and defense.”Upgrading America’s nuclear weapons is one of these areas, he said. The Pentagon plans to buy a new stealth bomber and a replacement for the Ohio-Class submarine over the next decade, both of which are being designed to carry and launch nuclear weapons.

Washington cut off nearly all but top-level dialog with Moscow after Russian forces invaded Ukraine last year. Relations between the two nuclear powers grew even more strained in recent months when Russia sent troops and weapons to Syria to back the embattled government of President Bashar al Assad. But Carter did not rule out future cooperation with Russia, pointing to Moscow’s part in helping to negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran and talks with North Korea.

“It is possible … Russia may play a constructive role in resolving the Syrian civil war,” Carter said.

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.