Professor Mary Ellen O’Connell to speak about artificial intelligence at The Hague
Mary Ellen O’Connell, Robert & Marion Short Professor of Law and Research Professor of International Dispute Resolution-Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, Notre Dame, will lecture on artificial intelligence, weapons, and international law next week at The Hague in the Netherlands.
O’Connell is an expert on international law, the use of military force, and high tech weapons, and will lecture on the topic during the Asser Winter Academy, scheduled for Feb. 11 to 15.
“Researchers are moving relentlessly from developing remotely piloted weapon systems to fully autonomous robots capable of target selection and execution,” O’Connell said of her lecture. “The next step is to swarming nano-bots that can be categorized as weapons of mass destruction. This lecture will analyze ways within International Humanitarian Law to restrict the use of the new category of lethal autonomous weapons systems.
The Asser Institute Winter Academy on Artificial Intelligence and International Law offers foundational knowledge on key issues at the interface of international law and artificial intelligence, and provides a platform for critical debate and engagement on emerging questions. The program is structured along five themes: Understanding AI, AI for good, AI and armed conflict, AI and responsibility, and AI governance. The program is available here. The Winter Academy includes modules addressing both technical and legal aspects, and alternates theoretical and more practical perspectives. The interactive training features more than 20 sessions by high-level speakers and includes panels, workshops, and a mini-hackathon.
The T.M.C. Asser Instituut is an internationally renowned center of expertise in the fields of public international law, private international law, and European law. Its mission is to further the development of international and European law in such a way that it serves the cultivation of trust and respect in the global, regional, national and local societies in which it operates. For more information, please visit the Instituut’s website.