Defence AI rollout sought on a war footing

India’s armed forces are adopting AI. But analysts urge advancing it, or else gaps with US and China will widen

- ‘SATARUPA BHATTACHARYA

India’s remote and inhospitable borders may soon be guarded by 3D-printed robots. The grey-coloured robots that slide on a rail can be controlled remotely but also function autonomously within set parameters if needed. They use artificial intelligence (AI) for surveillance functions such as human detection and face recognition. Developed by the Indian Army, the robots, called Silent Sentries, could be installed along the country’s border with Pakistan.

On the other side of the border, China is racing ahead with AI adoption. Last year, a video showed a “patrolling robot” on a mountain in China, watching India from across the Line of Actual Control, the de facto border. In another video, humanoid robots were shown at China’s border-crossing with Vietnam. While the sources of the social media videos are unclear, both emphasise how national borders are being secured through the use of AI, the technology behind programming machines to perform human tasks.

China has been pushing its military to adopt AI for almost a decade. The US has made complete AI integration before 2030 a part of its military strategy. India’s armed forces are adopting AI, interviews suggest, but experts urge advancing it. Or else, they say, the already significant technological gaps with the US and China will widen.

‘Need AI everywhere’

‘The importance of AI in defence is set to grow, army chief General Upendra Dwivedi said at an annual news conference in January. The army’s modernisation priorities with AI are “knitting” its legacy equipment; improving the mobility and protection of troops and physical assets; strengthening network operations, data centricity, and space and satellite communication; and acquiring more new-generation systems, including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and counterUAV technology.

To modernise logistics, robots and mule drones have been inducted in large numbers, but that is not enough, Dwivedi said.