Project description
Enhancing human agency in weapon systems integrating AI technologies
Autonomous and AI technologies are being integrated into weapons. However, specific legal rules governing their use are lacking. These technologies are shaping norms regarding the quality of human agency over the use of force, posing challenges to its meaningful exercise in warfare. Stakeholders have the opportunity to change their practices and establish a positive norm of human agency and accountability. In this context, the ERC-funded AutoPractices project seeks to raise awareness, co-develop best practices, and facilitate their dissemination to ensure a high quality of human agency in weapon systems that integrate autonomous and AI technologies. This initiative strives to establish a positive norm of human agency starting from the bottom-up, rather than waiting for top-down initiatives.
Objective
Autonomous and AI technologies have become integrated into the targeting functions of weapons. Algorithmic rather than human decision-making may therefore prevail in warfare, raising humanitarian, legal, ethical, and security concerns. Currently, there are no specific, legal rules to govern autonomy and AI in the military. In their absence, ERC AutoNorms has found that use of autonomous and AI technologies in weapon systems makes norms. Practices of design, of training personnel for, and of using such weapons shape a norm of what counts as the requisite form of human control over the use of force. AutoNorms has revealed that this emerging norm accepts a diminished, reduced form of human control when designing and using military autonomous/AI technologies as “normal”. This emerging norm is a societal challenge and a public policy problem because it undercuts the meaningful exercise of human agency over life and death decisions in war. The insight that practices make norms holds the potential for social innovation as a process of recontextualising norms through enacting different practices. Stakeholders could therefore shape a positive norm of human control through changing their practices from the bottom up. The ERC PoC project AutoPractices initiates and accompanies this social innovation process in three ways via multi-stakeholder collaboration: first, AutoPractices raises awareness among stakeholders about the differential effect of their practices on the emerging human control norm in the military domain via empirical mapping. Second, AutoPractices co-creates a set of best practices with stakeholders to sustain human control in weapon systems integrating autonomous and AI technologies at three workshops. Third, AutoPractices diffuses the co-created set of best practices via an operational toolkit and dissemination through multipliers. In this way, AutoPractices becomes a source of diffusing a positive norm of human control in weapon systems from the bottom-up.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project has not yet been classified with EuroSciVoc.
Be the first one to suggest relevant scientific fields and help us improve our classification service
You need to log in or register to use this function
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
-
HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
See all projects funded under this programme
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-ERC-POC - HORIZON ERC Proof of Concept Grants
See all projects funded under this funding scheme
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2023-POC
See all projects funded under this callHost institution
Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
5230 Odense M
Denmark
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.