Office of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation for the development of artificial intelligence

History

2021

The Office of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation for the development of artificial intelligence will be created by December 1

On May 31, 2021, it became known about the timing of the creation by the Russian Ministry of Defense of a department for working with artificial intelligence. This structure will have its own budget, said Mikhail Osyko, a member of the board of the Military Industrial Commission (MIC) under the government.

According to him, it is planned to complete work on the formation of an artificial intelligence department of the Ministry of Defense by December 1, 2021, and its start is scheduled for 2022nd.

It is noted that in terms of its functions and tasks, the new department will be similar to another department of the Ministry of Defense - promising interspecific studies. The formal department for working with artificial intelligence will become a customer in the development of relevant technologies.

Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation creates a department for working with AI

I think that if we manage to go in, fulfill and implement the results, then this will be a serious breakthrough, which sin cannot take advantage of. The Ministry of Defense will be a good driver in this process, especially in terms of practical application - something that is now lacking, "said Osyko.

It also became known about the possible introduction of standards for requirements for artificial intelligence used for military purposes.

I think that in the very near future we will encounter a new concept of "military artificial intelligence," as it was with robots. Rosstandart will actively connect to the development of requirements for military artificial intelligence, "said a member of the board of the military-industrial complex.

According to Osyko, the Ministry of Defense from July 2021 will begin to form a budget for 2022, including allocating funds for the needs of the new ordering department.

At the end of May 2021, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke about the creation of an "army of the future." The head of state, in particular, discussed with experts of the Ministry of Defense "the creation of priority weapons, which are based on high-tech technologies with elements of artificial intelligence." This included laser and hypersonic systems and robotic technology.^[1]

Creation of the Department of Defense for the development of the AI system of military drones

At the end of April 2021, it became known about the creation by the Russian Ministry of Defense of a special department responsible for the development of artificial intelligence for unmanned aerial vehicles and ground equipment.

This was stated by representatives of the department at a meeting of the working group on the development of complexes with unmanned aerial vehicles for military purposes. The event was held on the basis of the design bureau of Sukhoi, the website of the Government of the Russian Federation reports. During this event, issues related to the direction of intellectualization of unmanned aerial vehicles during group operation were discussed.

The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation creates a special department responsible for the AI system of military drones

The meeting participants agreed to improve joint efforts aimed at accelerating the development of unmanned civil aviation in the country and the introduction of artificial intelligence for military purposes. Any details regarding the created AI-department of the Ministry of Defense are not disclosed by the end of April 2021.

In 2020, the Ministry of Defense ordered the development of an AI system based on deep neural networks for military use. The value of the contract, which must be executed before November 10, 2022, amounted to 387.8 million rubles. At the same time, in 2020 it was planned to allocate more than 115 million rubles for these studies, in 2021 - over 152 million rubles, and in 2022 - 120 million rubles.

Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin drew attention to the fact that the technical modernization of the army and navy requires the introduction of new forms and methods of action of troops. In this regard, the head of state called for the development of military science, adopting the experience of modern armed conflicts and local wars, while at the same time focusing on the future. Putin called for a balance in the regulation of AI - both in the military sphere and in terms of traditions, law, morality.^[2]

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