From drones to sonobuoys, AUKUS partners betting on AI

WASHINGTON — The Australian, U.K. and U.S. trilateral security partnership known as AUKUS, often associated with the construction of nuclear-powered submarines, is also beginning to bear fruit in the fields of artificial intelligence and autonomy.

While the first pillar of the AUKUS agreement seeks to furnish Canberra with stealthy undersea vessels , the second, less talked-about pillar aims to foster leaps in all things digital: robotics, intelligence sharing, advanced computing and more.

“We’ve spent a lot of time, actually, over the last year or so, thinking about what AI cooperation with some of our closest allies and partners looks like,” Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Development and Emerging Capabilities Michael Horowitz said Jan. 9 at an event hosed by the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank. “Software is not, inherently, a barrier to cooperation with allies and partners .”

A handful of Blue Bear drones are seen in a field during artificial intelligence and autonomy testing among AUKUS partners in April 2023. (U.K. Ministry of Defence)

Among the AUKUS Pillar 2 advancements made thus far are the successful interplay of air and ground vehicles, including Blue Bear Ghost drones, Challenger 2 main battle tanks and a commercially hired FV433 Abbot self-propelled artillery gun, and the development of software that enables the sharing of submarine-hunting information over a vast region such as the Indo-Pacific.

“All three countries have P-8s. All three countries have sonobuoys,” Horowitz said, referencing the Boeing-made maritime patrol aircraft as well as sound sensors that float in the water to collect and relay data. “So our teams are working together on an algorithm that will let us gather data from U.K. and Australian sonobuoys, and vice-versa, that we can all roll out on our P-8s .”

The U.S. Defense Department years ago identified AI as a game-changer; the technology, officials say, can quickly parse otherwise overwhelming amounts of information, augment a commander’s decision-making process, and help reallocate precious manpower. The department in fiscal 2024 requested $1.8 billion for AI while juggling hundreds of related projects, including some tied to major weapons systems.

AI is also a critical piece of the Defense Department’s Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control concept.

The latest iteration of CJADC2 envisions seamless information-sharing across land, air, sea, space and cyber, and in concert with international forces. The U.S. would work closely with the U.K. and Australia in a fight against Russia or China, demanding clear lines of communication and delegations.

By jointly developing AI and its underlying infrastructure, the U.K. Ministry of Defence said in May, the militaries can figure out interoperability now, and not later, when bullets are flying, while also reducing costs.

“Accelerating technological advances will deliver the operational advantages necessary to defeat current and future threats across the battlespace,” Lt. Gen. Rob Magowan, the U.K. deputy chief of defense staff for military capability, said in a statement at the time. “We are committed to collaborating with partners to ensure that we achieve this while also promoting the responsible development and deployment of AI.”

Colin Demarest was a reporter at C4ISRNET, where he covered military networks, cyber and IT. Colin had previously covered the Department of Energy and its National Nuclear Security Administration — namely Cold War cleanup and nuclear weapons development — for a daily newspaper in South Carolina. Colin is also an award-winning photographer.

华盛顿——澳大利亚、英国和美国组成的三边安全伙伴关系（简称 AUKUS）通常与核动力潜艇的建造联系在一起，如今也开始在人工智能和自主领域取得成果。

AUKUS 协议的第一支柱旨在为堪培拉提供隐形水下舰艇，而第二支柱（较少被提及）则旨在促进所有数字化领域的飞跃：机器人技术、情报共享、先进计算等等。

“实际上，在过去一年左右的时间里，我们花了很多时间思考如何与我们最亲密的盟友和伙伴开展人工智能合作，”美国国防部负责部队发展和新兴能力的副助理部长迈克尔·霍洛维茨1月9日在战略与国际研究中心举办的一次活动上表示。“软件本身并不是与盟友和伙伴合作的障碍。”

2023年4月，在AUKUS合作伙伴进行的人工智能和自主性测试中，可以看到几架Blue Bear无人机在田野中作业。（英国国防部）

AUKUS 第二支柱迄今为止取得的进展包括空中和地面车辆的成功协同作战，包括蓝熊幽灵无人机、挑战者 2 主战坦克和商业租赁的 FV433 阿伯特自行火炮，以及开发能够在印太等广阔区域内共享反潜信息的软件。

“这三个国家都有P-8反潜巡逻机，也都有声呐浮标，”霍洛维茨说道，他指的是波音公司制造的P-8海上巡逻机以及漂浮在水面上收集和传输数据的声呐传感器。“因此，我们的团队正在合作开发一种算法，使我们能够从英国和澳大利亚的声呐浮标收集数据，反之亦然，然后我们可以将这些数据部署到我们的P-8巡逻机上。”

美国国防部多年前就将人工智能视为颠覆性技术；官员们表示，这项技术能够快速解析海量信息，增强指挥官的决策能力，并有助于重新分配宝贵的人力资源。在2024财年，国防部申请了18亿美元的人工智能预算，同时还要兼顾数百个相关项目，其中包括一些与主要武器系统相关的项目。

人工智能也是美国国防部联合全域指挥与控制概念的关键组成部分。

最新版的联合联合防务指挥与控制（CJADC2）设想在陆地、空中、海上、太空和网络空间实现无缝信息共享，并与国际力量协同作战。美国将在对抗俄罗斯或中国时与英国和澳大利亚密切合作，这要求建立清晰的沟通渠道和授权机制。

英国国防部在 5 月份表示，通过联合开发人工智能及其底层基础设施，两军可以立即解决互操作性问题，而不是等到枪林弹雨中才去解决，同时还能降低成本。

英国国防参谋部负责军事能力的副参谋长罗布·马戈万中将当时在一份声明中表示：“加速技术进步将带来必要的作战优势，以击败当前和未来战场上的各种威胁。我们致力于与合作伙伴协作，确保实现这一目标，同时促进人工智能的负责任开发和部署。”

科林·德马雷斯特曾是C4ISRNET的记者，负责报道军事网络、网络安全和信息技术方面的新闻。此前，他曾为南卡罗来纳州的一家日报报道美国能源部及其下属的国家核安全管理局，主要关注冷战后的清理工作和核武器研发。科林还是一位屡获殊荣的摄影师。