By Yashee Sharma
Publication Date: 2026-06-09 06:52:00
The rise of AI-powered drones in war zones has helped spark the highest number of global conflicts since World War II, according to a new report.
The Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) Global Peace Index 2026 found that for the first time in history, technology is making life-and-death decisions faster than humans can verify them.
Between 2018 and 2025, attacks by both AI and non-AI drones increased by more than 11,500 percent. AP
Between 2018 and 2025, attacks by both AI and non-AI drones increased by more than 11,500 percent, in part because AI reduced target acquisition times from one day to five seconds.
The report found that the Israel Defense Forces’ Lavender system marked 37,000 Palestinians as suspected militants in Gaza, with operators spending an estimated 20 seconds per target despite a 10 percent error rate.
Automated systems are also used in Ukraine to attack targets without operators.
With only 75 of 193 United Nations member states participating in the OECD’s AI program…
