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A Comparative Analysis of the Definitions of Autonomous Weapons Systems
Mariarosaria Taddeo1,2, Alexander Blanchard3
1Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK. mariarosaria.taddeo@oii.ox.ac.uk.
Science and Engineering Ethics
|August 23, 2022
Summary
This report analyzes definitions of autonomous weapons systems (AWS), finding current variations hinder ethical and legal agreement. It proposes a value-neutral definition focusing on autonomy, adaptability, human control, and purpose for better understanding and regulation of AWS.
Area of Science:
- International Relations
- Military Ethics
- Law and Technology
Background:
- Existing definitions of autonomous weapons systems (AWS) from states and organizations like ICRC and NATO vary significantly.
- These differing definitions create challenges in understanding AWS and reaching consensus on their ethical and legal implications, deployment, and regulation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To conduct a comparative analysis of current AWS definitions.
- To identify essential definitional aspects of AWS.
- To propose a value-neutral definition for AWS to facilitate ethical and legal discourse.
Main Methods:
- Comparative analysis of official definitions of autonomous weapons systems (AWS).
- Identification of key definitional components through analysis.
- Development of a novel, value-neutral definition.
Main Results:
- Current AWS definitions focus on disparate aspects, leading to fragmented approaches to ethical and legal challenges.
- Four key aspects—autonomy, adaptive capabilities, human control, and purpose of use—are identified as crucial for defining AWS.
- A value-neutral definition is proposed based on these essential factors.
Conclusions:
- A standardized, value-neutral definition of AWS is essential for fostering understanding and enabling agreement on regulation.
- The proposed definition, incorporating autonomy, adaptability, human control, and purpose, provides a foundation for addressing complex ethical and legal issues.
- Clear definitions are critical for navigating the future use and governance of autonomous weapons systems.
Keywords:
Adapting capabilitiesArtificial intelligenceAutonomous artificial agentsAutonomous weapons systemsAutonomyDefinitionHuman controlLethal autonomous weapons systems.More Related Videos
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