UPDATED with expert analysis WASHINGTON: The Pentagon has created a new Joint Artificial Intelligence Center (JAIC) that will have oversight over almost all service and defense agency AI efforts. This coordination function is crucial to the emerging AI arms race with Russia and China, experts told us. The JAIC will report to Chief Information Officer Dana Deasy, the establishing memo by Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan says. Its ambit is not quite untrammeled; any projects under $15 million remain the authority of the service or agency. The JAIC will establish a common set of AI "standards…. Undersecretary for Research & Engineering Mike Griffin, a far more prominent proponent of AI and other cutting-edge technologies who has warned China and Russia are catching up to the US, "will continue to promote development of new AI technologies, systems, and concepts" but without any clearly specified role in the new center. CIO Deasy has 30 days to consult the rest of the department ...

Editor's Note: The rapid pace of technological innovation is changing the nature of warfare, and futurists are busy spinning out scenarios of a U.S.-China clash in twenty years involving nano-technology and fully autonomous weapons systems. Yet how will new technologies shape insurgency and counterinsurgency, which conjures up images of guerrillas hiding in Vietnam's jungles? My Brookings colleague Chris Meserole looks at two of the latest books on the subject and assesses how the balance between rebels and government may tilt. When U.S. Special Forces entered Afghanistan in 2001, Facebook didn't exist, the iPhone had yet to be invented, and "A.I." often referred to an NBA star. Seventeen years later, American special operations forces continue to ride horseback in rural Afghanistan, but information technology has advanced rapidly.

What happens when you mix killer robots and Communists? It sounds like the punch line to a Cold War joke, but there are reasons to wonder whether China's Communist government, which likes to make decisions for its citizens, can work with autonomous armed robots that make their own decisions. Ditto for the People's Liberation Army and its Soviet-style centralized command and control system. "In a military context, questions of trust will be paramount," China expert Elsa Kania told The National Interest. "Will the PLA be more or less inclined to trust machine intelligence, relative to human intelligence? Will a military organization that often seems unwilling to grant autonomy to its officers and enlisted personnel be willing to embrace the autonomy of AI systems?"

As a former U.S. military service member who once had the Army Military Occupation Specialty 35F2LGN (translation: Nuclear Weapons Electronics Specialist Linguist German), I would like to volunteer the results of my independent AI scholar programming over the past quarter century from July 1993 to July 2018. I have created the following three open-source AI Minds: MindForth in 32-bit Win32Forth for intelligent robots; ghost.pl AI in Strawberry Perl Five for Web servers; and Tutorial AI Mind in JavaScript for Microsoft Internet Explorer.

Artificial intelligence is changing the world of retirement planning. By using improved datasets and algorithms to efficiently deliver solutions tailored to people's needs, AI can help them save, invest and retire better. One of the hottest trends to emerge in this area in recent years is the use of robo-advisors. These are software programs that use the data supplied by clients to create and automatically manage their investment portfolios. They're gaining in popularity, but are they better than human advisors?

Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles has announced that Businesses can apply for a share of up to £25 million to develop, demonstrate and trial technologies for connected and autonomous vehicles in real-world settings. The Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV) plans to invest up to £25 million in up to 4 pilot schemes for self-driving vehicles. Funding is for pilots of self-driving passenger vehicles which include at least a 6-month trial in a public or semi-controlled setting. Trials should have a clear commercial focus, with potential to become an enduring service, the centre has announced. CCAV was set up by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Department for Transport to help ensure the UK is a world leader in developing and testing connected and autonomous vehicles.

Introducing CIMON, a floating, basketball-sized robot that will serve as a companion and assistant to crew members aboard the International Space Station. Infused with artificial intelligence, the floating bot is reminiscent of HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey, but far less evil. Earlier today, SpaceX successfully launched a recycled Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida carrying around 6,000 pounds of cargo to the ISS. In addition to delivering genetically identical mice, super-caffeinated coffee, and other supplies, the CRS-15 Dragon capsule contains CIMON, the first interactive flight companion to take part in an ISS mission. Once aboard, CIMON--short for Crew Interactive MObile companioN--will assist the crew with its many activities. The point of this pilot project is to see if an artificially intelligent bot can improve crew efficiency and morale during longer missions, including a possible mission to Mars.

It is predicted that robots will surpass human intelligence within the next fifty years. The ever increasing speed of advances in technology and neuroscience, coupled with the creation of super computers and enhanced body parts and artificial limbs, is paving the way for a merger of both human and machine. Devices which were once worn on the body are now being implanted into the body, and as a result, a class of true cyborgs, who are displaying a range of skills beyond those of normal humans-beings, are being created. There are cyborgs which can see colour by hearing sound, others have the ability to detect magnetic fields, some are equipped with telephoto lenses to aid their vision or implanted computers to monitor their heart, and some use thought to communicate with a computer or to manipulate a robotic arm. This is not science-fiction, these are developments that are really happening now, and will continue to develop in the future.

I was recently asked to conduct a 2-hour workshop for the State of California Senior Legislators on the topic of "Big Data, Artificial Intelligence and Privacy." Honored by the privilege of offering my perspective on these critical topics, I shared with my home-state legislators how significant opportunities await the state. I reviewed the once-in-a-generation opportunities awaiting the great State of California ("the State"), where decision makers could vastly improve their constituents' quality of life, while creating new sources of value and economic growth. We have historical experiences and references to revisit in discerning what the government can do to nurture our "Analytics Revolution." Notably, the Industrial Revolution, holds many lessons regarding the consequences of late and/or confusing government involvement and guidance (see Figure 1).

"Small Unmanned Aerial Systems are becoming an essential tool of warfare and increasing funding for research and testing on resilience, communications, and operations is of critical importance. Rome Lab's ability to adapt to emerging challenges, especially in the arena of unmanned aerial systems continues to grow. This funding I secured will ensure that Rome can continue to lead the charge to find innovative ways of detecting, identifying, and disabling potentially hostile UAS's. It will help Rome Lab serve the critical and otherwise unmet research needs of the Department of Defense." said Tenney.