Technology already plays a vital role in modern warfare and, with the emergence of AI, it is expected to assume an even bigger role in the future of defence. So far, the Indian Army has undertaken various projects with many more in the pipeline aimed towards the integration of AI. However, not much has materialised in terms of improvement in its capabilities in an actual battle environment. "The scope of artificial intelligence is vast. And if I did say, what we have done till now is very rudimentary or very basic of what the scope or potential of AI in the Indian Army can be", said Lt. Gen. Shantanu Dayal, Deputy Chief of Army Staff while speaking at the'Artificial Intelligence in Defence' (AIDef) event.

Robotics and Artificial Intelligence till now have been used mainly for commercial work and yet to dominate defence sector in India. There is a huge potential in this segment and newly formed Task-Force on Artificial Intelligence by Indian government is a step towards economic transformation. Robotics and Artificial Intelligence (AI) is combination of technology and cognitive intelligence for simulation, processing of information and knowledge to build capability in a machine to imitate human behaviour. It is a transformative technology that has tremendous applications in the social, economic and military fields. Till some time back we had robots operated by a human or through a set of programming to perform repetitive task.

One of the major lessons learnt from the ongoing Ukraine-Russia war is that multi-domain battle space is getting more influenced by technology. And these include usage of swarms of drones, missiles, unmanned ground vehicles and more. And all of these are being driven by Artificial Intelligence or computer algorithms – these are used in the war zones to not only process huge quantities of information, but have the ability to make decisions. "Artificial intelligence is definitely being leveraged for enhancing the current C4ISR capabilities. The National Task Force had identified the 12 AI domains and the Indian Army has since undertaken projects both in-house as well as with the industry, especially deep tech start-ups," the Indian Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande told Financial Express Online.

New Delhi: The Indian Army with the help of National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) has established a Quantum and Artificial Intelligence (AI) Lab at Military College of Telecommunication Engineering in Madhya Pradesh's Mhow to spearhead research and training in this key developing field. Key thrust areas are Quantum Key Distribution, Quantum Communication, Quantum Computing and Post Quantum Cryptography, the force said. Indian Army chief General M.M. Naravane visited the facility to take stock of the situation and see technological research being taken by the labs. Indian Army has established an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Centre at the same institution with over 140 deployments in forward areas and active support of the industry and academia.

The Army has set up a quantum computing laboratory and a centre for artificial intelligence (AI) at a military engineering institute in Madhya Pradesh's Mhow. The two centres will carry out extensive research in developing transformative technologies for use by the armed forces. 'The Army, with support from the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS), has recently established the Quantum Lab at Military College of Telecommunication Engineering, Mhow to spearhead research and training in this key developing field,' the Defence Ministry said. It said the Indian Army is making steady and significant strides in the field of emerging technologies. Chief of Army Staff General MM Naravane visited the facility during his recent visit to Mhow. 'Indian Army has also established an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Centre at the same institution with over 140 deployments in forward areas and active support of industry and academia,' the ministry said in a statement.

New Delhi, Dec 29: The Indian Army with the help of National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) has established a Quantum and Artificial Intelligence Lab at Military College of Telecommunication Engineering in Madhya Pradesh's Mhow to spearhead research and training in this key developing field. Indian Army has established an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Centre at the same institution with over 140 deployments in forward areas and active support of the industry and academia. Since then, an impetus has been given to the Indian Army's Technology Institutions for investing in AI, Quantum and Cyber. By undertaking a multi-stakeholder approach incorporating Academia (such as IITs), DRDO organisations, Research Institutes, corporate firms, startups and industry players, this initiative is an apt example of Civil Military fusion with Atmanirbhar Bharat a key driving factor. Requisite timelines based objectives with adequate funding have been worked out for projects and progressive fielding of solutions in the Indian Army is expected on a fast track basis.

Recent use of a satellite controlled weapons platform used in the killing of Iranian nuclear scientist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh has invited international attention probably for the fact that a remotely controlled machine gun mounted on a pickup was used to pointedly kill him. It is for the first time that the machine gun was controlled remotely using advanced cameras and artificial intelligence and targeted only one individual without causing any collateral damage. Artificial intelligence-based platforms are the future of any battlefield. They can be easily deployed without being detected easily and cause havoc through enemy fire. They are stealthy and very effective. "The development of remote-controlled devices has seen phenomenal development since US forces started targeting terrorist networks with precise accuracy using the drones.

NEW DELHI: The Army is now undertaking a major study headed by a senior Lt-General on advanced "niche and disruptive warfare technologies", which range from drone swarms, robotics, lasers and loiter munitions to artificial intelligence, big data analysis and algorithmic warfare. Sources on Friday said the aim of the "holistic study", which comes amidst the ongoing military confrontation in eastern Ladakh with China, is to bolster the conventional war-fighting capabilities of the 13-lakh strong Army as well as prepare for "non-kinetic and non-combat" warfare in the years ahead. China, of course, has been assiduously working to develop futuristic warfare technologies, like artificial intelligence (AI)-powered lethal autonomous weapon systems, towards its overall endeavor to usher in a major "revolution in military affairs (RMA) with Chinese characteristics". Indian Army's new land warfare doctrine in 2018 had stressed the need to sharpen the entire war-fighting strategy, ranging from creation of agile integrated battle groups (IBGs) and expansive cyber-warfare capabilities to induction plans for launch-on-demand micro satellites, directed-energy weapons like lasers, AI, robotics and the like. The new IBGs, after a similar study, have already started to take initial shape as self-contained fighting formations that can mobilize fast and hit hard.

"Any nation that leads in Artificial intelligence, will be the ruler of the world"--Vladimir Putin Since time immemorial mercenaries were used to wage wars on foreign lands by Kings. Mercenaries were so effective that a King from Hungary, in the 15th century, had a standing mercenary army. It is a pragmatic strategy to deploy a trained manpower in prolonged high-casualty war zone, that is highly motivated, effective, and keeps the cost of the war and mission low. Behemoth countries like America and Russia have now decided to adopt autonomous weapon system (AWS) that work on artificial intelligence (AI), to spearhead their aggressive policy abroad. AI is the mercenary of 21st century!!! India has so far been reticent in relying on artificial intelligence due to the trepidation of losing control over the game play of events.

In an attempt to match capabilities of adversaries like China, the Indian Army is set to release a blueprint on the setting up of an artificial intelligence system that will reduce human errors and over-dependence on manpower. The AI will be integrated so as to advance surveillance and help mobilise troops quicker, since the army is currently dependent only upon foot patrols in difficult terrains, such as the Chinese frontier. To this end, a seminar is being conducted by the Jaipur-based South Western Command of the Indian Army at Hisar to explore AI based defence applications with experts and industry representatives. It is also intended to be an opportunity to discuss research and development for futuristic weapon platforms.