Governments need to move faster to manage the security risks posed by artificial intelligence (AI), defence officials and experts warned at a major security conference in Beijing.
The concerns were voiced as China and the United States, the world's two leading AI powers, prepare for summit talks later this month.
The two countries remain divided over how AI should be used in military systems, including those linked to nuclear weapons.
More than 2,000 military officials, diplomats and academics from around 100 countries attended the three-day Beijing Xiangshan Forum, which ended on Thursday.
Speakers warned that AI is speeding up military decision-making at a time when false information can spread just as quickly.
Pakistan's Defence Secretary Muhammad Ali said technological advances were “compressing the strategic timeline”, while warning that AI could accelerate decisions as misinformation damages public trust.
International Committee of the Red Cross vice-president Jurg Lauber said the growing autonomy of weapons made human oversight increasingly important.
“As weapon systems become increasingly autonomous, the need to preserve human judgment and control over the use of force becomes more pressing,” he said.
The debate comes as China and the U.S. compete for leadership in AI and seek to shape how the technology is developed and used.
Thailand's Defence Minister Adul Boonthumjaroen said the challenge was no longer simply about which country would become the most powerful.
“The most pressing is not who will be the most powerful, but rather, how can we build an international order,” he said.
Both Beijing and Washington have acknowledged the potential dangers of military AI, but they have yet to agree on common safeguards.
The forum highlighted a growing concern among countries beyond the major powers: without clear rules and meaningful human control, increasingly autonomous technology could make conflicts faster, harder to manage and more dangerous.
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