Updated December 19 2019 Defense Primer Emerging Technologies Senior U S defense and intelligence officials have identified a number of emerging technologies that could have a disruptive impact on U S national security in the years to come These technologies include  artificial intelligence  lethal autonomous weapons  hypersonic weapons  directed-energy weapons  biotechnology and  quantum technology As these technologies continue to mature they could hold significant implications for congressional oversight U S defense authorizations and appropriations military concepts of operations and the future of war Artificial Intelligence Although there is no official U S government definition of artificial intelligence AI AI generally refers to a computer system capable of human-level cognition AI is currently being incorporated into a number of military applications including intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance logistics cyber operations command and control and semi-autonomous and autonomous vehicles As it develops AI could enable new concepts of operations such as swarming i e cooperative behavior in which uninhabited vehicles autonomously coordinate to achieve a task that could present both challenges and opportunities for the U S military Recent news reports and analyses have highlighted the role of AI in enabling increasingly realistic photo audio and video digital forgeries popularly known as “deep fakes ” Adversaries could potentially deploy this AI capability as part of their information operations in a “gray zone” conflict Deep fake technology could be used against the United States and its allies to generate false news reports influence public discourse erode public trust and attempt to blackmail diplomats Some have suggested that AI could be used to create full digital “patterns-of-life ” in which an individual’s digital footprint is mapped against other personal information such as spending habits and job history to create comprehensive behavioral profiles of servicemembers suspected intelligence officers government officials and private citizens Similar to deep fakes this information could in turn be used for targeted influence operations or blackmail To coordinate defense-wide AI efforts the Pentagon established the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center JAIC pronounced “jake” in June 2018 under the Department of Defense’s DOD’s Chief Information Officer In addition the FY2019 National Defense Authorization Act P L 115232 §1051 established a National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence to assess U S competitiveness in AI and offer recommendations to Congress Lethal Autonomous Weapons Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems LAWS are a class of weapon systems capable of independently identifying a target and employing an onboard weapon system to engage and destroy the target without manual human control LAWS require computer algorithms and sensor suites to classify an object as hostile make an engagement decision and guide a weapon to the target This capability would enable the system to operate in communications-degraded or -denied environments where traditional systems may not be able to operate LAWS generally do not yet exist and some senior military and defense leaders have expressed concerns about the ethics of ever fielding such systems For example in 2017 testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Paul Selva stated “I do not think it is reasonable for us to put robots in charge of whether or not we take a human life ” Currently there are no domestic or international legal prohibitions on the development of LAWS however an international group of government experts has begun to discuss the issue Approximately 25 countries have called for a preemptive ban on the systems due to ethical considerations while others have called for formal regulation DOD Directive 3000 09 establishes department guidelines for the development and fielding of LAWS to ensure that they comply with “the law of war applicable treaties weapon system safety rules and applicable rules of engagement ” Hypersonic Weapons Hypersonic weapons—which fly at speeds of at least Mach 5—are in development in a number of countries including the United States There are two categories of hypersonic weapons  Hypersonic glide vehicles HGV are launched from a rocket before gliding to a target  Hypersonic cruise missiles HCM are powered by high-speed engines throughout the duration of their flight In contrast to ballistic missiles hypersonic weapons do not follow a ballistic trajectory and can maneuver en route to their destination making defense against them difficult Currently no such defense against hypersonic weapons exists and experts disagree on the affordability https crsreports congress gov Defense Primer Emerging Technologies technological feasibility and utility of hypersonic missile defense options These options could include interceptor missiles hypervelocity projectiles laser guns and electronic attack systems According to open-source reporting China and Russia have conducted successful hypersonic weapons tests and are expected to have an operational HGV capability as early as 2020 The United States is unlikely to field an operational HGV system before 2022 Although HCM technology is less mature than HGV technology reports suggest that it could be fielded by Russia in 2023 Other countries— including France Australia India Germany and Japan— also have research programs in hypersonic weapons Directed-Energy Weapons DOD defines directed-energy DE weapons as those using concentrated electromagnetic energy rather than kinetic energy to “incapacitate damage disable or destroy enemy equipment facilities and or personnel ” DE weapons— often colloquially referred to as “lasers”—could be used by ground forces in counter rocket artillery and mortar CRAM or short-range air defense SHORAD missions They could offer low costs per shot and nearly limitless magazines that in contrast to existing conventional systems could enable an efficient and effective means of defending against missile salvos and swarms of uninhabited vehicles Theoretically DE weapons could also provide options for boost-phase missile intercept given their speedof-light travel time however as in the case of hypersonic missile defense experts disagree on the affordability technological feasibility and utility of this application High-powered microwave HPM weapons a subset of DE weapons could be used as a nonkinetic means of disabling electronics communications systems and improvised explosive devices in the event of a conflict In addition the U S military has explored using HPM in a nonlethal “heat ray” system for crowd control however the system was recalled—likely due to ethical and operational considerations Biotechnology Biotechnology leverages life sciences for technological applications A number of developments in biotechnology hold potential implications for national security As a 2018 Government Accountability Office GAO report notes the Departments of Defense State State and Homeland Security DHS and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence ODNI all assess that biotechnologies such as the low-cost gene-editing tool CRISPR-Cas9 have the potential to “alter genes or create DNA to modify plants animals and humans Such biotechnologies could be used to enhance or degrade the performance of military personnel The proliferation of synthetic biology—used to create genetic code that does not exist in nature—may increase the number of actors that can create chemical and biological weapons ” U S adversaries may be less restrained in both researching and applying biotechnology particularly as it relates to human performance modification and biological weapons Quantum Technology Quantum technology which employs the principles of quantum physics has not yet reached maturity however it could hold significant implications for the future of encryption and stealth technologies GAO reports that DOD State DHS and the ODNI have assessed that “quantum communications could enable adversaries to develop secure communications that U S personnel would not be able to intercept or decrypt Quantum computing may allow adversaries to decrypt unclassified classified or sensitive information which could enable them to target U S personnel and military operations ” Quantum technology could have other military applications such as quantum radar systems hypothesized to be capable of identifying the performance characteristics e g radar cross-section speed of objects with a greater level of accuracy than conventional radar systems This would significantly ease the tracking and targeting of U S lowobservable or stealth aircraft such as the F-22 F-35 and B-2 Similarly advances in quantum sensing could theoretically enable significant improvements in submarine detection rendering the oceans “transparent ” This could in turn hold implications for the survivability of the U S seabased nuclear deterrent CRS Products CRS Report R45178 Artificial Intelligence and National Security by Kelley M Sayler CRS In Focus IF11333 Deep Fakes and National Security by Kelley M Sayler and Laurie A Harris CRS Report R44466 Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems Issues for Congress by Nathan J Lucas CRS In Focus IF11150 Defense Primer U S Policy on Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems by Kelley M Sayler CRS Report R45811 Hypersonic Weapons Background and Issues for Congress by Kelley M Sayler CRS Report R45098 U S Army Weapons-Related Directed Energy DE Programs Background and Potential Issues for Congress by Andrew Feickert CRS Report R44175 Navy Lasers Railgun and Gun-Launched Guided Projectile Background and Issues for Congress by Ronald O'Rourke CRS Report R44824 Advanced Gene Editing CRISPR-Cas9 by Marcy E Gallo et al CRS Report R45409 Quantum Information Science Applications Global Research and Development and Policy Considerations by Patricia Moloney Figliola Other Resources Government Accountability Office National Security LongRange Emerging Threats Facing the United States as Identified by Federal Agencies December 2018 https www gao gov assets 700 695981 pdf Kelley M Sayler Analyst in Advanced Technology and Global Security https crsreports congress gov Defense Primer Emerging Technologies IF11105 Disclaimer This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service CRS CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role CRS Reports as a work of the United States Government are not subject to copyright protection in the United States Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS However as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or material from a third party you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material https crsreports congress gov IF11105 · VERSION 5 · UPDATED