This one was a tough read. Not because of subject but due to the structure of the work. It is like collection of separate works from various conferences and seminars collected into the book. Due to this, very similar to modern documentaries on TV, things tend to repeat and this seriously affects the reading pace.

I wont go into details here (title says it all :)) but author truly covers everything related to modern automated combat systems - from smart missiles to combat platforms (like AEGIS and anti aircraft systems and of course ubiquitous U(C)AVs) - starting from differentiating various systems and human role in them, role of AI (and thank God, author is realistic when it comes to general AI), plans and visions for developing the future war machines with everything coming from the horses mouth so to speak, opposition and reasons for opposition to development of autonomous war machines to legal implications and is it possible to ban development of autonomous war machines.

Some parts are straight out naive (like land-mine and cluster ammunition ban - land-mines are still used everywhere and cluster munitions are also used even by "responsible" parties (certain French shame incident related to delivery of cluster ammo in recent conflict shows this)) but in majority of text author is aware that constant mantra "but they might be doing it" will always cause the further development of more dangerous weapons. Unfortunately there is no way around this especially with weaponry that is not tested fully in combat (remember that gas is taboo now only because of effects of its use in WW1 where wind could disperse gas to friendly side in a matter of minutes - generally biological and chemical weapons have tendency to backfire). One thing annoyed me - constant talk about "responsible" armies (like US and Western armies) and "authoritarian" states (under quotes because these days this just means US and allies disapprove of given country, otherwise for example Arab countries would constantly be marked as such and shunned by same parties since the beginning of modern age) is kinda silly. As far as I know Agent Orange and various defoliants were used by "responsible" army and I have a feeling that families obliterated by UCAVs targeting assumed high-priority targets through the Middle East would not agree with that responsible attribute. Also would not you agree that sponsored secret bio chemical labs in certain countries do not show much responsibility.

Because lets be fair - every army fights to win and will use everything at its disposal to achieve victory. Everything else is side effect for analysts and theoreticians to build their academic careers and condemning something that is water under the bridge for at least a decade. And because of this autonomous weapons will arrive and remain on battlefields. Only thing that we can be grateful for is that these will be sturdy, relatively simple weapon systems with narrow intelligence for a specific action field for decades (if not centuries ahead). For no other reason than to alleviate the danger of loss of control.

For the above mentioned unnecessary political comments I take one star off.

Rest of the book is truly an excellent thorough analysis of current technological and application aspects of remotely controlled and autonomous combat systems and weapons. Considering the scope and level of information I think this might be one of the most complete (if not the most complete) book on the subject I have read.

Highly recommended. ( )

This book takes a pretty comprehensive look at autonomous weapons; it's both a primer and a review if technical, tactical, strategic and moral and ethical issues concerning the use of automated weapons from human-guided systems to self-guided weapons. You could say "from stones to Skynet" because Scharre refers to the Terminator series regularly. Chunks of this book are so filled with techno-babble, military jargon and acronyms that they are difficult to read, which is most unfortunate given the nature of the weapons Scharre discusses and the issues those weapons raise. I made the effort to read them carefully and I am glad I did. ( )

Autonomous weapons are no longer a matter of science fiction. They are among us and what's even more frightening, some of them can be bought relatively cheap or built quite easily.

Army of None is not just facts and figures. It's a tale about a world we live in. What we make of it is completely in our hands. For now. ( )

Fascinating overview of the subject of autonomous weapons. The ethical parts of this are quite complex. Author spends a lot of time trying to propose pathways forward. Appreciate the effort, and maybe I am a cynic, but just kept thinking that every country is gonna build this crap. and its gonna get messy. Gonna be a keep up with the Jones's race. On a side note, the Sensor Fuzed Weapon. Who the f thought up something so crazy! OMG. ( )

This book, written by a non-technologist with extensive military experience, describes the intersection of artificial intelligence with United States military affairs. It uses terms like “autonomy” and “semi-autonomy” extensively. Autonomous weapons are weapons that can identify their own targets. Semi-autonomous weapons can track pre-identified targets (that is, targets previously identified by humans). Semi-autonomous weapons are currently in use; no autonomous weapons are known to be in use.

The line between these two is currently blurring. This is not due to Department of Defense (DARPA) research, but due to research in artificial intelligence (AI) in the commercial sphere. Computers are becoming “intelligent.” This book explores what that means and whether computers can be considered as “alive.” It does not take this excursion as an academic exercise but rather as an exploration into the future of warfare.

As a technologist, I found myself desiring more optimism in the author. My attitude towards AI is very positive and very inevitable. This author keeps admonishing the reader that humans must remain “in the loop” in military applications so that they can make the ultimate decision whether to go for a kill or not. Again, as a technologist, I see human involvement as more-or-less inevitable. We humans will find a way to make increasingly better use of artificial intelligence because that’s what we’ve done with other technologies throughout thousands of years of human history.

We must – must – continue to work. I’m not scared of what’s ahead. It’s an opportunity for people like me to continue to work and to impact the future. I’m much more scared of our prospects for the future if countries like the United States stop research on military applications and countries like Russia continue. The field of AI will continue to progress because of its promise in other applications. The only real question is to what extent the military will be “in the loop.” I’d rather us focus our energies rather than following a policy of appeasement towards those with a harsher track-record of human rights.

Overall, this book achieves its purpose and communicates its message clearly. Those interested in military affairs or technology should pay attention.
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