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  • Our wars used to be fought on foot, but then we harnessed horses for battle. Swords were

  • our weapon of choice until guns were invented. Chariots slowly evolved into tanks, and in

  • less than 100 years this [picture of the wright bros], turned into this [video of a

  • stealth bomber]. But the change that’s now underway will be the most significant in human

  • history, as soldiers from the world’s richest countries will soon rarely come face to face

  • with their enemies. This is a profile of the robotic takeover of the world’s militaries.

  • For years now, the military of the United

  • States and our closest allies, the Europeans, Israel, and South Korea have been using a

  • whole range of robotic systems, like remotely controlled robots, now commonly used

  • for surveillance and for destroying bombs; close-in weapons systems onboard virtually

  • every ship in the west’s Navy can destroy incoming missiles, aircraft and smaller, faster

  • boats all without human assistance; autonomous Unmanned Ground Vehicles guard

  • areas and attack enemies using lethal and non-lethal weapons;

  • the MQ Reaper Unmanned Aerial Vehicle is a long-range killer that’s so effective, America’s

  • 174th Fighter Wing has became the first squadron in history to convert from flying fighter

  • jets to an allremotely piloted UAV attack group;

  • the secretive stealth unmanned RQ-170 drone that the US lost control of over Iran in 2011;

  • tiny surveillance drones the size of small birds or insects;

  • a robotic, remote-controlled sentry gun that’s replacing human guards on the South Korean

  • side of the demilitarized zone and for Israel, along the Gaza border fence; and the Protector,

  • an unmanned speed boat used by the Singapore Navy to patrol the busiest port in the world;

  • the Israeli Navy to enforce its blockade of the Gaza Strip; and the Mexican Navy to confront

  • highly creative drug smugglers.

  • Some have called for a halt in the development of military robotics technology, but the US,

  • its allies, and key adversaries continue to make their militaries as technologically advanced

  • as possible because of the massive tactical advantage it gives them. The Pentagon currently

  • deploys some 11,000 UAVs and 12,000 ground robots across the world, making America the

  • clear leader. But China has already demonstrated several prototype systems that may be just

  • as sophisticated as some in the American arsenal. This is setting off a regional arms race of

  • sorts as Japan, South Korea and Singapore feel the need to respond with significant

  • investments of their own. The Russians have begun deploying armed robots to increase security

  • at its ballistic missile bases and may deploy unmanned airships to monitor its interests

  • in the Arctic.

  • Worldwide, military spending on the robotics industry is projected to hit $7.5 billion

  • by 2018. But its not just governments doing the investing. Google has begun buying up

  • robotics companies, positioning itself to dominate the commercial market, estimated

  • to be worth around $37 billion by 2018. Google - or another tech company like it - could

  • become the next generation’s dominant defense contractor.

  • Some of the projects that we know are in development for military use and should hit the battlefield

  • in the coming years include: the Knifefish, an underwater minesweeping

  • robot that will replace the Navy’s trained dolphins and sea lions in 2017;

  • an unmanned autonomous helicopter carrying a remotely operated sniper rifle;

  • unmanned ground vehicles of the future will increasingly perform automated surveillance,

  • reconnaissance, assault and breaching missions. Other UGVs will simply be retrofits of existing

  • humvees and tanks with sensors and cameras; Boston Dynamicshumanoid robots - used

  • for search and rescue - and their BigDog robotic pack mule to accompany soldiers into terrain

  • that’s too difficult for conventional vehicles; unmanned missile barges will provide extra

  • weapons for existing destroyers; cruise missiles that are smart and networked

  • to autonomously coordinate and swarm their attack so as to ensure maximum damage to their

  • target; a Joint Aerial Layer Network will link all

  • air assets with all other military assets in a region to provide maximum coordination

  • and efficiency; high-speed, unmanned fighters and bombers

  • will fly alongside manned aircraft until they take over the air force completely. Theyll

  • be piloted by soldiers located safely back on a ship, or on some faraway base;

  • And undetectable underwater pods will be placed in the ocean weeks, months, or even years

  • ahead of time and eventually given a command to release unmanned submarines or unmanned

  • aerial vehicles that will float to the surface and then take to the air.

  • The reason that militaries will turn to robots to fight its battles is obvious: itll keep

  • their soldiers from getting killed and it will greatly enhance national security and

  • defense capabilities. But, like many problems posed by our increasingly technological world,

  • removing the human connection to what war viscerally feels like on the ground, where

  • it’s being fought, will create a whole new set of challenges. Many of the American pilots

  • now flying drone missions in Iraq and Afghanistan already do so from places like Arizona, far

  • away from the battlefield, which means they can bomb a group of people, and then half

  • an hour later be sitting safely at home with their families. It’s no surprise that this

  • extreme daily contrast is causing these soldiers to experience high rates of PTSD. Then there’s

  • the idea that by further removing the human cost of war from the equation, we risk becoming

  • more tolerant of our governments engaging in armed conflicts. And then there’s the

  • unknown: what happens when two nuclear armed states engage in a direct, robots-on-robots

  • battle? How does one win that kind of conflict? And, when does losing one justify starting

  • a war between living, breathing human beings?

  • For better or worse, these are questions were going to learn the answers to in the first

  • half of the 21st century, so we better get to work creating some agreed-upon international

  • standards before its too late.

  • If you enjoyed this video, hit that like button or share it to start your own conversation.

  • Click on the screen to watch a TED Talks that explores some of these challenges, or our

  • newest video, or a video about how robots are probably going to take almost all of our

  • jobs. You can take our poll: will the rise of robots in our militaries ultimately be

  • a good or bad thing for mankind?

  • Thanks for watching. For the daily conversation, I’m Bryce Plank.

Our wars used to be fought on foot, but then we harnessed horses for battle. Swords were

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