Arms control

Photo: Pfc. Rhita Daniel/U.S. Marine CorpsThe U.S. military is intensifying its commitment to the development and use of autonomous weapons, as confirmed by an update to a Department of Defense directive. The update, released Jan. 25, 2023, is the first in a decade to focus on artificial intelligence autonomous weapons. It follows a related implementation plan released by NATO on Oct. 13, 2022, that is aimed at preserving the alliance’s “technological edge” in what are sometimes called “killer robots.”Both announcements…

Some of the first nuclear bombs were tested off the coast of the Bikini Atoll in July 1946.Image: Keystone (Getty Images)Everyday it appears that we’re spiraling closer to the apocalypse. Today, that future seems a little closer than we thought as United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres warned today that humanity is “one misunderstanding, one miscalculation” away from being wiped off the face of the planet by a nuclear holocaust. *nervous laughter*Members of the United Nations have kicked off the beginning of…