New IRW Project: The Realities of Algorithmic Warfare
Project
With this project, IRW aims to get a clearer picture of what AI and machine learning mean for 21st century warfare.
Here you will find a variety of relevant publications, op-eds, events, and podcasts published by ourselves and others.
The history of warfare has been defined by technological innovation. Everything from gunpowder to the atomic bomb has radically altered the way wars are fought and how peace is achieved. Remote warfare is no exception. Conducting warfare from a distance is made possible by a complex network of technologies including surveillance, algorithms, machine learning, unmanned and autonomous vehicles, and precision-guided munitions. By transforming what is possible on and off the battlefield, the ascendency of these technologies raises fresh questions about the role of humans in warfare as well as how the technologies themselves are developed and proliferated.
IRW presents research at Future of War Conference
Conference
Reflection on IRW's panel 'Prototyping the Future of War: Imagining Ludic, Hybrid, and Autonomous Warfare’
The Road Ahead for the Regulation of Autonomous Weapons
Recommendations
Guest author Emma Laumann reflects on the latest round of stalled talks at the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons and asks what is next for the regulation of autonomous weapons?
”Prototype warfare”: Innovation, optimisation, and the experimental way of warfare
Article
In her latest article ‘”Prototype warfare”: Innovation, optimisation, and the experimental way of warfare” dr. Marijn Hoijtink sets out to map the contours of a new regime of warfare.
Armed drones are not some kind of superweapon
Op-ed
While the war in Ukraine rages on, the Dutch state seems to be laying the political foundations for the armament of its military drones. In an op-ed in Het Parool, IRW’s Lauren Gould and Jip van Dort reflect on the shortcomings of this political process.
Dutch House of Representatives to vote on use of armed drones
Commentary
One day after the Dutch armed forces made the first test-flight with a brand new MQ-9 Reaper, the Dutch House of Representatives will vote on a resolution to allow for its armament. IRW argues a more thorough debate is required.
Autonomy in the kill-chain: More than semantics?
Commentary
This article examines a 2020 incident in Libya, of which the UN reported the use of a lethal autonomous weapon. It provides insight into what is meant by autonomy in weapon systems and its ramifications for war and its victims, both current and future.
Prototype Warfare CEL Project
Internship
IRW is excited to announce our new Community Engaged Learning project under the Prototype Warfare programme.
The Prototype Warfare Project
Project
This IRW project develops a fuller understanding of how humans shape technologies, and how technologies shape our actions in warfare.
Surveillance and Remote Warfare
Podcast
IRW's project leader Lauren Gould relays why she thinks the concept of surveillance is key to understanding the changing nature of warfare in the 21st century.