Spies will need artificial intelligence, says report

A new intelligence report from the Royal United Services Institute (Rusi) has suggested that UK spies will need to use artificial intelligence to better counter a range of threats.

The think tank said that adversaries are likely to use the technology for attacks in cyber space and on the political system, and AI will therefore be needed to detect and stop them from causing disruption and harm. This is likely to provoke a refreshed look at privacy and human-rights considerations.

However, the paper warned that AI technology remains unlikely to predict who might be about to be involved in serious crimes, such as terrorism, and should not replace human judgement.

Alexander Babuta, one of the report authors, said: “Adoption of AI is not just important to help intelligence agencies manage the technical challenge of information overload. It is highly likely that malicious actors will use AI to attack the UK in numerous ways, and the intelligence community will need to develop new AI-based defence measures.”

The independent report was commissioned by the UK's GCHQ security service.