Context: According to a research report by Delhi-based Centre for Joint Warfare Studies, an autonomous think tank, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is set to rapidly transform the landscape of warfare with deeptech being deployed for tasks ranging from autonomous weapons systems to intelligence gathering and cybersecurity.
Relevance of the Topic: Mains: How AI is transforming the landscape of warfare and India’s Preparedness.
Use case of AI in Warfare includes
- Development of autonomous weapons systems that can select and engage targets without human intervention.
- Analysing vast amounts of data to identify potential threats.
- Tracking enemy movements, and forecasting future attacks.
- Creating realistic battlefield simulations to enable field evaluation trials as well as allowing soldiers to train in virtual environments to prepare for real-world combat scenarios.
Countries around the world have started integrating AI in Warfare
China
- China is using the AI models to improve artillery systems by reducing the time between shots and increasing accuracy.
- Chinese military drones are equipped with generative AI that allows them to detect and destroy enemy radars automatically.
- China combines AI across land, air, sea, space, cyberspace, and electromagnetic spectrum. This gives it a strong edge in multi-domain operations.
Pakistan
- Pakistan’s Air Force set up a Centre of Artificial Intelligence and Computing (CAIC) in 2020.
- During Operation Sindoor, Pakistan likely received LIVE satellite images and data from China. AI may have been used to quickly process this data, helping Pakistan track Indian troop movements in real-time.
Ukraine
- Ukraine has equipped its long-range drones with AI that can autonomously identify terrain and military targets, using them to launch successful attacks against Russian refineries.
Israel
- Israel has also used its Lavender AI system in the conflict in Gaza to identify 37,000 Hamas targets. As a result, the current conflict between Israel and Hamas has been dubbed the first “AI war”.
India
- The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) established the Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR) in 1986, with the aim of developing autonomous technologies for military use.
- CAIR has worked on a wide range of applications including combat systems, path planning, sensor integration, target identification, underwater mine detection, patrolling, logistics, and localisation.
However, despite this early start, India faces several key challenges in effectively harnessing AI for modern warfare.
Challenges for India in AI Warfare
- Lack of Energy Infrastructure
- AI technologies need continuous, high-power electricity for data centres and simulations. India has low nuclear power capacity (around 7.5 GW), much less than countries like South Korea.
- Overdependence on solar and wind energy without backup storage makes the power grid unstable.
- Inadequate AI Infrastructure: India lacks large-scale, defence-specific AI data centres. Limited access to high-performance computing for real-time battlefield analysis and decision-making.
- Fragmented Research & Development: Agencies like DRDO’s CAIR have been working since 1986, but progress has been slow. No large-scale, coordinated national mission focused on AI for defence.
- Weak Civil-Military Fusion: Unlike China or the U.S., India does not have strong collaboration between private tech firms, startups, academia, and the military. Defence R&D is mostly government-driven, limiting innovation speed.
- Lag in C4ISR, Space, Cyber, and Electromagnetic Domains: India lags behind China in C4ISR capabilities- Command, Control, Communication, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance, particularly in the domains of space, cyberspace, and the electromagnetic spectrum.
- Lack of National Policy or defence doctrine on AI integration: No clear national policy or defence doctrine on AI integration in military strategy. Regulatory and bureaucratic delays slow down tech adoption in defence forces.
- Limited Private Sector Participation: Private sector involvement in nuclear energy and AI defence systems is limited. Without private innovation and investment, India cannot scale up AI infrastructure quickly.
AI is transforming modern warfare into an “agentic” battlefield, where autonomous systems, rapid decision-making, and multi-domain dominance decide outcomes.