MI6 Chief Richard Moore claim in a public speech in Prague that AI cannot replicate human intelligence gathering.
Instead, Moore clarified that MI6 considers that the “opposite is likely to be true,” and that “the unique characteristics of human agents in the right places will become still more significant.”
Moore acknowledged the potential for AI to surpass certain aspects of human cognition, possibly faster than anticipated. However, he firmly stated that AI could never replace the “extraordinary bond” as crucial in humans in intelligence gathering.
“My teams are now using AI to augment – but not replace – their judgment about how people might act in various situations.” He added, “They are combining their skills with AI and bulk data to identify and disrupt the flow of weapons to Russia for use against Ukraine.”
AI Use of Other Countries
Earlier, Moore warned about Russia and China’s accelerated AI development to advance their geopolitical objectives, which urges the West to address this threat seriously.
In his speech, Moore revisited his concerns, particularly regarding China. He accused Beijing of extensively gathering data domestically and abroad to fuel its AI ambitions. For instance, Moore highlighted how China used the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines as a pretext to collect data from recipient nations, creating a risky “data trap” that poses national security threats.
Despite the challenges brought by AI, Moore emphasized that MI6 is actively employing the technology to detect and prevent weapons trafficking to Russia during its invasion of Ukraine.