China gains on the US in the artificial intelligence arms race

Robert O. Work, the veteran defense official retained as deputy secretary by President Trump, calls them his "A.I. dudes." The breezy moniker belies their serious task: The dudes have been a kitchen cabinet of sorts, and have advised Mr. Work as he has sought to reshape warfare by bringing artificial intelligence to the battlefield. Last spring, he asked, "O.K., you guys are the smartest guys in A.I., right?" No, the dudes told him, "the smartest guys are at Facebook and Google," Mr. Work recalled in an interview. The United States no longer has a strategic monopoly on the technology, which is widely seen as the key factor in the next generation of warfare.