China, Russia and the US are in an artificial intelligence arms race

For Russia and Vladimir Putin, it is clear that planetary domination and artificial intelligence (AI) are inextricably intertwined. "Artificial intelligence is the future, not only for Russia but for all humankind," he said via live video feed as schools started this month. "Whoever becomes the leader in this sphere will become the ruler of the world." Putin isn't an outlier in his thinking; he is simply vocalizing to match the intensity a race that China, Russia, and the US are already running, to acquire smart military power. Each nation has formally recognized the critical importance of intelligent machines to the future of their national security, and each sees AI-related technologies such as autonomous drones and intelligence processing software as tools for augmenting human soldier capital.