Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Not long ago, AI chatbots were seen as helpful assistants. People used them to write emails, summarise documents, generate images, plan vacations and even do their homework. Companies pitched AI as a tool that would make life easier and businesses more productive. But the technology is evolving rapidly. The same AI systems that millions of people use every day are now increasingly finding their way into military operations, a development that is raising uncomfortable questions about where the technology is headed. The latest example comes from Elon Musk’s AI company xAI.
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Grok is reportedly being used in military operations
According to a report by The Independent, the Donald Trump administration used xAI’s chatbot Grok as part of military operations against Iran. The disclosure came in a sworn statement filed by Cameron Stanley, the Pentagon’s chief digital and artificial intelligence officer, in a lawsuit alleging that xAI’s data centres are illegally polluting Black communities.
In the filing, Stanley described Grok’s continued operation as “a matter of paramount national security.” He also said the AI model was used in operations involving more than 2,000 munitions fired at 2,000 distinct targets within 96 hours.
According to Stanley, Grok is among four AI models currently capable of supporting national security applications and one of only three AI products equipped to support mission-critical operations in top-secret settings.
The filing appears to be the first explicit acknowledgement by a US administration official that Musk’s AI is being used in military operations against Iran.
The disclosure comes amid growing debate
The revelation is significant because it comes at a time when opposition to AI’s role in warfare is growing. Many researchers have long warned that AI is no ordinary technology. As AI systems become more capable, governments and companies around the world are increasingly treating them as strategic assets, similar to technologies that can alter the balance of power.
The debate intensified earlier this year after the US military’s use of AI systems during an operation targeting Venezuelan President Nicols Maduro reportedly triggered a dispute with AI company Anthropic.
Anthropic objected, pointing to its terms of use, which do not allow its chatbot Claude to be used for violent purposes, weapons development or surveillance. Since then, relations between the company, the Pentagon and the Trump administration have reportedly worsened.
Even tech workers are worried
The concerns are not limited to AI companies. In April, reports said that more than 600 Google employees signed a letter urging CEO Sundar Pichai not to allow the Pentagon to use the company’s AI in classified operations.
Employees reportedly feared that AI could eventually be used in lethal autonomous weapons, surveillance systems or military decisions where mistakes could have deadly consequences.
AI’s future may not look like what people imagined
The disclosure about Grok also comes amid fierce competition in the AI industry. Only recently, Yann LeCun, often referred to as one of the godfathers of AI, dismissed xAI as a “failure” and questioned whether it could keep up with rivals such as OpenAI and Anthropic.
But if the Pentagon’s filing is any indication, the future of AI may not be decided solely by which chatbot writes the best emails or generates the most realistic images. Increasingly, the technology is being judged by something much bigger: whether it can influence how wars are fought.
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
