Artificial Intelligence (AI) is often framed in terms of productivity, startups and digital governance. But its most consequential impact is unfolding where national sovereignty and global power are ultimately tested, in defence. History shows that every major leap in military technology has redrawn the balance of power. AI is poised to do exactly that.
Throughout history, technological revolutions have reshaped the character of warfare. Gunpowder altered medieval power equations. Industrial production determined outcomes in the World Wars. Nuclear capability redefined deterrence in the Cold War. Today, AI is redrawing the geometry of the battlespace.
Modern ISR platforms generate terabytes of data daily, cyberattacks propagate in milliseconds, and missile interception windows can last only minutes. In such compressed timelines, AI-driven decision support becomes operationally decisive.
AI is becoming the cognitive layer through which modern military systems sense, decide and act.
The nature of conflict is shifting from platform-centric warfare to network-centric and now data-centric warfare. Decision cycles are shrinking. The side that can sense, process, decide and act faster will dominate. AI enables precisely that compression of time. It enhances situational awareness through real-time data fusion. It powers autonomous systems in air, land and maritime domains. It supports predictive maintenance, logistics optimisation and threat modelling. It transforms cyber defence from reactive to anticipatory.
For India, the question is not whether AI will shape defence. The question is whether India will shape AI for its defence.
Globally, major powers have moved decisively. The US has begun integrating AI into ISR, decision-support, and command-and-control architectures through programmes such as Project Maven and JADC2. China has declared “intelligentised” warfare as a strategic objective and is fusing civil and military innovation ecosystems. Israel has reportedly employed AI-assisted targeting and surveillance systems to accelerate operational tempo. European nations are advancing defence AI capabilities while simultaneously developing ethical and regulatory frameworks.
India cannot afford strategic passivity. It must absorb lessons while crafting its own doctrine suited to its geography, threat matrix and democratic values.
India’s strengths are real. A vast pool of software engineers, a thriving startup ecosystem, strong space capabilities and emerging semiconductor initiatives provide a foundation. Indigenous initiatives in unmanned aerial systems, AI-enabled surveillance along borders, and data analytics in internal security operations are steps in the right direction. Pilot integrations of AI into intelligence analysis, maritime domain awareness, and border surveillance are underway in select commands.
However, structural challenges remain.
First, defence innovation in India must move beyond procurement driven modernisation to design-driven transformation. AI systems cannot simply be imported and plugged in. They must be trained on local terrain, languages, behavioural patterns and threat signatures. Indigenous data sets are strategic assets. Building secure, sovereign defence data architectures is essential.
Second, civil-military fusion needs to deepen. Many of the most transformative AI breakthroughs globally have emerged from collaboration between academia, private enterprise and defence establishments. Through initiatives such as iDEX, more than 400 defence startups are now engaged in developing technologies ranging from AI-enabled drones to autonomous surveillance systems, though scaling these solutions remains the next challenge. India’s universities, IITs, startups and established technology firms must be integrated more systematically with the armed forces. Defence problem statements should be opened up in controlled frameworks to encourage solution development by young innovators.
Third, doctrine must evolve alongside technology. AI-driven systems can recommend courses of action at speeds beyond human cognition. Yet ultimate accountability in a democracy rests with human decision makers. India must develop clear operational doctrines that define human oversight, escalation control and rules of engagement in AI-assisted warfare. Learning from NATO frameworks and international discussions on responsible military AI can help shape robust guidelines.
Fourth, India must invest not only in applications but in foundational research. Advanced machine learning models, edge computing for battlefield environments, secure communications, and resilient semiconductor supply chains are not optional. They are strategic imperatives. Relying excessively on foreign hardware or proprietary algorithms introduces vulnerabilities. Research and development spending in defence AI must be seen as long-term national investment, not short-term expenditure. More than 75% of advanced semiconductor manufacturing capacity is concentrated in East Asia, highlighting the strategic risks of hardware dependence in AI-enabled defence systems.
Fifth, cybersecurity and counter AI capabilities deserve equal emphasis. With global cybercrime damages projected to surpass $10 trillion annually, algorithmic resilience and protection against adversarial AI attacks are becoming as important as kinetic deterrence. As India integrates AI into defence systems, adversaries will attempt to disrupt, spoof or poison those systems. Building resilient, explainable and auditable AI models is essential. The battlefield of the future will include adversarial attacks on algorithms themselves.
At the same time, India must remain anchored in its democratic ethos. Unlike authoritarian models of surveillance and control, India’s approach to AI in defence must balance effectiveness with accountability. Transparency in procurement, ethical oversight and parliamentary scrutiny are not obstacles. They are sources of legitimacy and strategic strength.
There are also opportunities unique to India’s context. Border management across high-altitude terrains can benefit enormously from AI-powered sensor networks and predictive analytics. Maritime security in the Indian Ocean Region can be enhanced through AI-driven anomaly detection in shipping patterns. Counter terrorism operations can leverage advanced pattern recognition while respecting civil liberties through calibrated safeguards.
Importantly, defence AI should not be isolated from the broader innovation ecosystem. Technologies developed for military use often spill over into civilian applications. GPS, the internet and satellite imaging are examples. Similarly, AI systems designed for logistics optimization or disaster response in military settings can strengthen civilian infrastructure. A dual-use innovation mindset will multiply returns.
India can also play a constructive global role. As a leading voice of the Global South and a major democracy, India can advocate for international norms that prevent destabilising autonomous weapons races while enabling responsible innovation. Engagement in multilateral forums to shape standards on military AI, transparency and confidence-building measures will enhance India’s strategic standing.
Ultimately, AI in defence is about deterrence credibility. In a global AI market projected to exceed $1.5 trillion by 2030, technological asymmetry will increasingly translate into strategic asymmetry. In a world where conflicts are increasingly hybrid, spanning cyber, information and kinetic domains, technological asymmetry can invite aggression. A technologically confident India strengthens regional stability.
The AI India Impact Summit 2026 highlighted India’s ambition to lead in human-centric AI. In defence, this translates into a simple principle. Technology must enhance strategic judgment, not replace it. Algorithms can accelerate analysis, but moral and political responsibility must remain human.
India stands at a pivotal moment. With its demographic strength, expanding industrial base and growing geopolitical weight, it has the ingredients to become a serious AI defence power. The path forward demands investment, institutional reform, ethical clarity and international engagement.
In the coming decades, military power will be measured not only in tanks and aircraft, but in terabytes processed per second and decisions made in milliseconds. The nations that combine technological sophistication with strategic restraint will shape the balance of power.
India must ensure it is among them.
This article is authored by Major Akash Mor (Retd), strategic management consultant and Sumit Kaushik, social impact and public policy consultant.