Characteristics of the Military Domain and their Impact on Military AI Applications

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is anticipated to be a pivotal technology for achieving military superiority. However, many characteristics related to the military environment generate unique challenges to design, development, and deployment of responsible and effective military AI. This paper maps these environmental characteristics and the practical challenges that emerge from them, before offering “Development Principles” that provide concrete and actionable guidance to those working on or with AI for military applications, showing both pitfalls and recommended ways forward. This paper was originally presented at the NATO Science and Technology Organization Symposium (ICMCIS) organized by the Information Systems Technology (IST) Scientific and Technical Committee, IST-209-RSY - the ICMCIS, held in Oeiras, Portugal, 13–14 May 2025.