AI in Military: Is Regulation Enough to Secure Humanity’s Future?

It is not fun to talk about AI in military applications, but it is a must.

Talking AI in the military sector at Davos usually circled back to one thing: Regulation. But in a conversation with Alain Berset, Secretary General of the #CouncilofEurope, the dialogue was elevated.

Berset’s perspective is a vital one for the European defense landscape: Having enough rules is not enough ⛔. To truly safeguard humanity’s interests, we need to balance governance with pragmatic, actionable approaches. We can't afford to let the ‘perfect’ policy become the enemy of ‘practical’ security.

➡️𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐥? A dual-track strategy where world-class governance runs in parallel with real-world, scalable tech #ai applications.

The Competitive Imperative: Why Rules Aren't a Shield

While Europe often prides itself on being the "global referee" of tech regulation, we have to face a cold, hard reality: The competitive advantages of AI are too high to ignore. In critical sectors like national defense, disaster response, and cyber-security, AI doesn't just offer an incremental improvement—it offers a paradigm shift. If the "benefits" of AI include 10x faster threat detection or autonomous systems that can save lives in high-risk zones, then a strategy based solely on restriction is, ironically, a risk in itself.

The "Regulation Trap"

If we wait for the perfect legal framework before we begin the "doing," we fall into the Regulation Trap. This is the gap where:

• Adversaries move faster: Global actors who do not share our ethical constraints are already deploying these tools.

• Innovation atrophies: Talent and capital flee to ecosystems that prioritize action over paperwork.

• Governance becomes theoretical: You cannot effectively regulate technology you do not understand through practical application.

Moving Toward Pragmatic Action

The path forward isn't just about being the most regulated—it’s about being the most prepared. A Dual-Track Strategy means that while the Council of Europe and other bodies refine the ethical guardrails, our technical and military sectors must be actively building, testing, and scaling AI. We need Sandboxes with Stakes—controlled environments where AI is applied to real-world defense challenges. This allows us to learn the failure points of the tech in real-time, which in turn informs better, more actionable regulation.

Walking and Chew Gum

Grateful for the candid insights from Alain Berset. We are at a crossroads where the safety of our future depends on our ability to walk and chew gum at the same time: to be uncompromising on our values, but aggressive in our execution.

The most ethical AI in the world is useless if it is sitting on a shelf while the world moves on without us.