Hume’s Law as Another Philosophical Problem for Autonomous Weapons Systems

AbstractAutonomous weapons systems (AWS) are emerging as key technologies of future warfare. So far, academic debate concentrates on the legal-ethical implications of AWS but these do not capture how AWS may shape norms through defining diverging standards of appropriateness in practice. In discussing AWS, the article formulates two critiques on constructivist models of norm emergence: first, constructivist approaches privilege the deliberative over the practical emergence of norms; and second, they overemphasise fundamental norms rather than also accounting for procedural norms, which we introduce in this article. Elaborating on these critiques allows us to respond to a significant gap in research: we examine how standards of procedural appropriateness emerging in the development and usage of AWS often contradict fundamental norms and public legitimacy expectations. Normative content may therefore be shaped procedurally, challenging conventional understandings of how norms are constructed and considered as relevant in International Relations. In this, we outline the contours of a research programme on the relationship of norms and AWS, arguing that AWS can have fundamental normative consequences by setting novel standards of appropriate action in international security policy.

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Normative Epistemology for Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems

Lethal Autonomous Weapons ◽

10.1093/oso/9780197546048.003.0016 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 237-258

Author(s):

S. Kate Devitt

Keyword(s):

Autonomous Systems ◽

Higher Order ◽

International Humanitarian Law ◽

Humanitarian Law ◽

Ethical Justification ◽

Autonomous Weapons ◽

Development Evaluation ◽

Normative Epistemology ◽

Weapons Systems

The rise of human-information systems, cybernetic systems, and increasingly autonomous systems requires the application of epistemic frameworks to machines and human-machine teams. This chapter discusses higher-order design principles to guide the design, evaluation, deployment, and iteration of Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS) based on epistemic models. Epistemology is the study of knowledge. Epistemic models consider the role of accuracy, likelihoods, beliefs, competencies, capabilities, context, and luck in the justification of actions and the attribution of knowledge. The aim is not to provide ethical justification for or against LAWS, but to illustrate how epistemological frameworks can be used in conjunction with moral apparatus to guide the design and deployment of future systems. The models discussed in this chapter aim to make Article 36 reviews of LAWS systematic, expedient, and evaluable. A Bayesian virtue epistemology is proposed to enable justified actions under uncertainty that meet the requirements of the Laws of Armed Conflict and International Humanitarian Law. Epistemic concepts can provide some of the apparatus to meet explainability and transparency requirements in the development, evaluation, deployment, and review of ethical AI.

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Requirement of Mens Rea for War Crimes in the Light of the Development of Autonomous Weapons Systems

Anuario Mexicano de Derecho Internacional ◽

10.22201/iij.24487872e.2021.21.15599 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 1 (21) ◽

pp. 441

Author(s):

Xavier J. Ramírez García de León

Keyword(s):

War Crimes ◽

Mens Rea ◽

Autonomous Weapons ◽

Weapons Systems

El desarrollo de prácticamente cualquier tecnología conlleva presiones sobre el marco legal que evidencian, por lo general, las dificultades que presenta el derecho para avanzar al mismo ritmo. En algunos casos, estas presiones adquieren una relevancia significativa, si no por su visibilidad, sí por las consecuencias que una deficiente regulación podría generar. Este artículo analiza, desde la perspectiva de la Corte Penal Internacional, el supuesto problema que implicaría la introducción de sistemas de armas autónomas al campo de batalla, particularmente en lo relativo al requisito de mens rea para crímenes de guerra.

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Autonomous weapons systems and ethics in International Relations 1

The Routledge Handbook to Rethinking Ethics in International Relations ◽

10.4324/9781315613529-27 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 312-325

Author(s):

Birgit Schippers

Keyword(s):

International Relations ◽

Autonomous Weapons ◽

Weapons Systems

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Autonomous Weapons and the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence

Ethics of Artificial Intelligence ◽

10.1093/oso/9780190905033.003.0008 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 212-236

Author(s):

Peter Asaro

Keyword(s):

Artificial Intelligence ◽

Autonomous System ◽

Human Control ◽

Moral Agents ◽

Lethal Force ◽

Autonomous Weapons ◽

Weapons Systems

As the militaries of technologically advanced nations seek to apply increasingly sophisticated AI and automation to weapons technologies, a host of ethical, legal, social, and political questions arise. Central among these is whether it is ethical to delegate the decision to use lethal force to an autonomous system that is not under meaningful human control. Further questions arise as to who or what could or should be held responsible when lethal force is used improperly by such systems. This chapter argues that current autonomous weapons are not legal or moral agents that can be held morally responsible or legally accountable for their choices and actions, and that therefore humans need to maintain control over such weapons systems.

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