Taking place at the Hague, the Netherlands, on 15 and 16 February 2023, the Responsible AI in the Military Domain Summit (REAIM) gathered participants from various industries across the world; ranging from the government to the military, private sector, academia, and international organisations; to discuss responsible uses and applications of AI in the military.

Discussions at REAIM centred around three themes:

• Myth-busting AI: breaking down the characteristics of AI – what do we need to know about the technical aspects of AI to understand how it can be applied responsibly in a military context?
• Responsible deployment and use of AI – what do military applications of AI mean in practice? What are the main benefits and vulnerabilities?
• Governance frameworks – which frameworks exist to ensure AI is applied responsibly in the military domain? What additional instruments and tools could strengthen governance frameworks, and how can stakeholders contribute?

RSIS’ Military Transformations Programme (MTP) carried out two sessions at the Summit, including a panel discussion on the AI Wave in Defence Innovation and a workshop on Pursuing Trustworthy AI Governance in Defence Innovation. The panel is based on an upcoming edited volume on the AI wave in defence innovation, put together following the RSIS AI Conference in 2021. Panellists, including Dr Michael Raska, Dr Simona R. Soare, Samuel Bendett, Dr Jean-Marc Rickli, and Wichuta Teeratanabodee, presented the development of military AI and AI governance from different regions, followed by a Q&A session. They also led the interactive workshop, which gathered policymakers and representatives from various countries to brainstorm and discuss the challenges, possibilities, and potential solutions for military AI governance.

A significant point commonly raised at REAIM was that there is an urgent need to address how AI should be developed and used, particularly by and within the military. Key considerations for responsible AI in the military domain centre around the topics of human-machine interaction, the level of human control, trustworthiness, transparency, and accountability. As technologies are moving rapidly, dialogues and cooperation at the multi-stakeholder and international levels are important to ensure that AI is used responsibly and safely.