This Is Not How 'Skynet' Begins, Air Force Says of Artificial Intelligence Efforts

A top Air Force commander has assured reporters that no, the military's experiments with artificial intelligence are not the first step toward "Skynet," the evil defense network in the "Terminator" movies that tried to wipe out humanity. Google recently announced that it will not work with the Pentagon beyond its 2017 contract on Project Maven, an effort to have artificial intelligence help analyze footage from drones. Speaking at a Defense Writers Group breakfast on Thursday morning, Air Force Gen. Mike Holmes, head of Air Combat Command, said that the purpose of Project Maven is to determine whether "machines can learn to do the things that people are doing." Holmes went on to explain that the Air Force does not have enough people to watch all of the full motion video taken from drones, so airmen are using so-called "learning algorithms" to teach machines what to look for in the endless footage. "The way we've been doing that kind of the same way I watch 3-year-olds learn things on their iPads"," Holmes said. "Pick all the green things.