Lawmakers Seek AI to Support Electromagnetic Spectrum Efforts in Battle

The House Armed Services Subcommittee on Cyber, Information Technologies and Innovation wants to speed up the development of artificial intelligence to improve warfighters’ ability to detect and analyze electromagnetic spectrum signals.

Under a mark on the fiscal year 2024 defense budget, the subcommittee urged the Department of Defense to provide forces with electromagnetic spectrum capabilities to counter adversaries’ electronic warfare efforts and maintain battlefield awareness. The panel also called for AI-powered electromagnetic spectrum signal classification technology used by special operations forces to be expanded to conventional units.

Furthermore, the secretary of defense would be required to submit a report by December 2023 regarding DOD efforts to develop such capabilities, DefenseScoop reported.

Experts have highlighted the department’s efforts to improve its electromagnetic spectrum capabilities in recent years. Martin Klein, C3 AI’s senior vice president of defense and intelligence, brought up the DOD’s spectrum superiority strategy as an example of shifting priorities.

Meanwhile, Kevin Finch, an executive adviser at Booz Allen Hamilton and former Defense Information Systems Agency official, emphasized the role of AI in identifying unknown signals.