THE NEW FIRE by Ben Buchanan and Andrew Imbrie is subtitled "War, Peace, and Democracy in the Age of AI." The authors, both with ties to the Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) at Georgetown, are currently serving in the Biden administration. In this new text, they argue that artificial intelligence has three sparks: data, algorithms, and computing power, each of which is discussed at length in the first section called Ignition. From there, Buchanan and Imbrie explore Fuels (machine learning applications for killing, hacking, and disinformation) as well as a third section, Wildfire (the contagion of emotions like hope and fear). Recognized as experts in this area, Buchanan and Imbrie chastise democracies for their relatively slow start in establishing international standards for AI, noting, for example that "China's government and companies have made an aggressive push to develop United Nations standards for facial recognition and surveillance systems. Failure to lead on standards setting processes cedes vital ground to autocracies that will be hard to regain." The writing is a bit dry and requires the explanation of technical terms, but a significant portion of this text is devoted to bibliographical notes and an index, both of which will be helpful to student researchers.

If you want to know how Artificial Intelligence (AI) works, this book lays it out definitively, It's all about 1) data, 2) algorithms, and 3) computing power. Keep those in mind as you read this book. Then you'll get the views of the !) Evangelists who want to build machines that can see, create, plan, and aid humanity in reaching its full potential, In other words, they're enthusiastic. 2) Warriors who want to harness AI not only for science but also for national security. Their enthusiasm takes a dark turn. 3) Cassandras who step back and say, "Wait a minute! Are you aware of all the flaws in this? These systems may crash just when we need them the most!"

And then there is the human factor, best illustrated by the oft-told story of Lieutenant Stanislav Petrov, who was on duty when the alarms went off in Russia that multiple missals were heading toward Russia from the United States. His job was to push the button that would launch an immediate counterattack.. He hesitated. Turns out that the sun's glare off a passing cloud had confused the satellite warning system, The human factor prevailed over trust in the machine, and we all lived to see another day.

Each of these views (The evangelists, the warriors, and the Cassandras) are prevalent as the reader learns the history of AI, who the players are that developed AI, and how it grew through many iterations to eliminate bugs, and how it expanded through the many visions for additional uses.

This book is one of the finest, most readable, technical books that I have ever read.

My only criticism is of the unfortunate title. "The New Fire" is such a cliché. The word "Fire" is used in so many titles of books about so many different subjects that, as a metaphor, it must be explained. The book is so valuable that the title MUST have the keywords that tell the potential reader what it is about!

networks (GAN) are explained in very clear terms, so that they can be understood by readers without a technical background. To make the book a more pleasant read, the authors also combine case studies with the personal stories of many individual actors involved in the development of AI research.

The New Fire shows how AI, and machine learning in particular, is already reshaping the way States think about war and peace. The analogy with fire is a way to suggest that AI does not have to result in the destruction of humanity and that we can learn to harness this “new fire” to ensure it used for good. The book is structured in three parts. In the first section, the three “sparks” of AI are analysed, namely data, algorithms, and computing power. Sections 2 and 3, on the other hand, focus on (inter)national security concerns, covering issues such as AI-powered cyberattacks, AI-powered disinformation campaigns, and autonomous lethal weapons.

In each chapter, emerging issues are clearly presented and assessed through three different perspectives: the pessimistic view (called the “Cassandras”), the optimistic view (the “evangelists”), and the realistic view (the “warriors”). This allows for a balanced discussion and does not prevent the authors from making their own recommendations on how democratic States, and especially the US, should go about investing their resources in AI research applied to geopolitics.

Whereas some thinkers like Yuval Noah Harari believe that AI will give autocracies an advantage over democracies, Buchanan and Imbrie are more optimistic and outline some of the strengths of democracies in today’s geopolitical competition around AI, from the control of computer chips’ manufacturing capabilities to the attraction of R&D talent. But a lot of uncertainty remains, and the many possible scenarios developed in the book are definitely helpful in grasping the potential impact of AI on the future of international relations.

A very good and timely commentary on most aspects of AI and machine learning and how it influences our daily lives. Very well researched and written. Accessible even for the novices on the topic.