AI’s Growing Role in the Israel-Hamas Conflict
An investigation reveals the burgeoning use of artificial intelligence by the Israeli military since the start of the war on Hamas, utilizing commercial AI models from US-based companies.
The Associated Press investigation highlights the increased reliance of the Israel Defense Force (IDF) on AI, describing it as a “game changer” for rapidly identifying targets by sifting through vast amounts of data. However, the same investigation raised concerns about the potential for errors due to “faulty data and flawed algorithms” within the AI systems.
According to health ministries in Gaza and Lebanon, the conflict has resulted in the deaths of over 50,000 people.
Microsoft’s Close Ties with Israel and AI Deployment
Microsoft’s relationship with the Israeli military, noted by the AP, is especially close compared to other US tech firms. Following the surprise attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023, which resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and the taking of over 250 hostages, internal company information shows a significant spike in the use of Microsoft’s computer servers to store massive amounts of data.
Usage of Microsoft and OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, AI systems jumped almost 200 times higher in March last year compared to pre-October 7 levels. The data volume doubled to over 13.6 petabytes between then and July 2024, which is equivalent to approximately 350 times the digital memory required to store every book in the Library of Congress.
Since the initial attacks, the Israeli military has leaned heavily on cloud and AI services provided by Microsoft and its partner OpenAI. Microsoft staff have been embedded with various units to offer support with the rollout of these technologies.
According to a presentation from last year, Israel also utilized Google Cloud and Amazon Web Services to manage the surge in data processing demands, which were overwhelming their own servers. Col. Racheli Dembinsky, the Israeli military’s top information technology officer, stated that the AI had provided “very significant operational effectiveness.”
How AI Is Utilized in Warfare
An intelligence officer who works with the system reported to the AP that the Israeli military leverages Microsoft Azure to compile information gathered through mass surveillance, which includes the transcription and translation of phone calls, texts, and audio messages. The AI then analyzes this data to identify patterns or terms, including conversations between individuals.
Furthermore, the AI is programmed to detect when individuals are providing directions. This information can be cross-referenced with the IDF’s data to pinpoint locations for targeted strikes.
However, tech experts and those involved with the systems have expressed concerns. They point out that AI can produce errors due to various factors, such as incorrect translations from Arabic to Hebrew. One intelligence officer, who is tasked with checking the translations, confirmed to the AP that these issues have, in fact, led to targeting mistakes.
“This is the first confirmation we have gotten that commercial AI models are directly being used in warfare. The implications are enormous for the role of tech in enabling this type of unethical and unlawful warfare going forward,” Heidy Khlaaf, chief AI scientist at the AI Now Institute and former senior safety engineer at OpenAI, told the AP.
