Our picks: Information warfareNew Information Warfare Tools | Preventing Cyberattacks | AI-Enabled Command, and more

If You Build It, They Will Lose: Competing with China Requires New Information Warfare Tools  (Andrew P. Thompson, CIMSEC)
Written into the most recent National Security Strategy is the principle that Great Power competition will continue to play a major role in the shaping of our strategic priorities.1 As the Navy continues adapting to operations below the level of armed conflict, how we implement combat capability must adjust. China’s modernization of its Navy, enhanced with its desired use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), should catalyze change in our own development efforts.

America and Its Military Need a Blockchain Strategy  (Trevor Logan and Theo Lebryk, C4ISRNET)
For the first time, China’s five-year plan for social and economic development calls for the use of blockchain applications in supply chain management, e-governance and fintech, as well as related research and development on smart contracts, asymmetric encryption and consensus algorithms. Chinese military publications have consistently proclaimed that blockchain technology will provide the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) with an edge in intelligence, weapons lifecycle, personnel management and information warfare. Greater investment by the Chinese government in a range of blockchain applications risks positioning Beijing as a leader in this foundational technology at the expense of the U.S. national security.

The PLA views blockchain as a way to combat disinformation domestically. Because blockchain is founded on an immutable ledger, it can also preserve data integrity throughout military supply chains.

Biden’s Infrastructure Plan Includes Billions to Develop Emerging Tech the Military Needs  (Andrew Eversden, C4ISRNET)
President Joe Biden’s infrastructure plan released Wednesday calls for $180 billion in new research and development spending on emerging technologies expected to define the coming decades and drive military innovation.
The American Jobs Plan, which would total $2 trillion in new spending over a decade through corporate tax increases, addresses concerns that a lack of federal investment in research and development risks the U.S. seceding the position of the world’s top technological innovator to China. Leading the world in technology is “critical to both our future economic competitiveness and our national security,” Biden’s plan stated.
If Congress accepts the proposal, the government would try to counter China by pushing billions into emerging technologies — including quantum computing, artificial intelligence and microelectronics — that underpin weapon systems and will help the Pentagon compete in increasingly digital battlefields.

USSOCOM: Information-Enabled Command versus AI-Enabled Command  ( Mark Grzegorzewski, Small Wars Journal)
As the excitement around artificial intelligence applications grows, United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) remains on the forefront in adopting this emergent technology. Special Operations Forces (SOF) have always been the tip of the spear in fighting our nation’s wars and serve as the preeminent asymmetric force. Thus, it comes as no surprise that USSOCOM would want to incorporate the potentially game changing technology of AI into every new program. However, SOF should be careful not to become too enamored with AI tools. Rather, it should continue the focus on executing its core missions and seeing where AI applications may fit in instead of being captivated by a still brittle technology that may or may not have the impacts needed within SOF’s core missions. For the missions of the future, especially downrange in the future operating environment, highly advanced technology may not always be the weapon of choice. Therefore, we both must prepare the force for the potentialities of AI and stay focused on operating with the human domain without support from AI technologies.

Cyber Attacks Are Here to Stay: How to Prevent Them?  (Analytics Insight)
Cyber attacks are becoming more frequent and they are only likely to increase over the coming years. From both a personal and a professional point of view, we need to be able to defend ourselves from cyber attacks to keep our important data safe. Let’s take a closer look at how we can best prevent them.