PodMAPS: a podcast exploring how artificial intelligence is transforming the military domain – Details, episodes & analysis

PodMAPS is a podcast series exploring how artificial intelligence is transforming the military domain, and what it means for international peace and security.  

The final episode asks: what might a successful future for military AI look like in practice? A diverse group of experts offer their visions, concerns, and hopes – from the United Nations to civil society, academia, and young professionals who will inherit the frameworks being built today. Topics include the pace of AI integration into the military domain, meaningful inclusivity versus tokenism, the challenge of verification, and bridging the gap between technical and policy communities.  

Featuring Izumi Nakamitsu (UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs), Isabelle Jones (Stop Killer Robots), Dr. Michael Horowitz (Perry World House, University of Pennsylvania), Sofia Romansky (HCSS), Dr. Saeed Aldhaheri (University of Dubai), Joon Baek (Youth for Privacy), Dr. Bruce Watson (GC REAIM Commissioner), and Yasmin Afina (UNIDIR). Hosted and produced by Ulysse Richard (UNODA) as part of the Military AI, Peace & Security (MAPS) Dialogues, funded by the Republic of Korea. 

Thank you for listening. Share the series with your network and join the conversation on military AI. 

Links: 

• Stop Killer Robots Campaign: https://www.stopkillerrobots.org/  

• Cold War Incidents at Sea Agreement: https://2009-2017.state.gov/t/isn/4791.htm 

• EU AI Act: https://artificialintelligenceact.eu/ai-act-explorer/ 

PodMAPS is a podcast series exploring how artificial intelligence is transforming the military domain, and what it means for international peace and security.  

This third episode looks at the evolving landscape of normative proposals on military AI and explores recommendations from the Global Commission on Responsible AI in the Military Domain and the United Nations Institute on Disarmament Research (UNIDIR). The discussion then narrows to two critical areas: lessons learned from lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS) and the risks associated with the potential integration of AI into nuclear command, control, and communications.  

Featuring Dr. Yasmin Afina (UNIDIR), René Holbach (UNODA), Sofia Romansky (HCSS), Juliana Helou van der Berg (UNODA), and Fei Su (SIPRI). Hosted and produced by Ulysse Richard (UNODA) as part of the Military AI, Peace & Security (MAPS) Dialogues, funded by the Republic of Korea. 

All four episodes are now available. Listen to the full series and share it with your network. 

Links: 

• UN General Assembly Resolution 79/239 on AI in the Military Domain: https://docs.un.org/A/79/239  

• Secretary-General's Report A/80/78: https://undocs.org/A/80/78  

• Strategic Guidance Report from the Global Commission on Responsible AI in the Military Domain: https://hcss.nl/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/GC-REAIM-Strategic-Guidance-Report-Final-WEB.pdf 

• UNIDIR 10-Step Evidence-Based Road Map for Future Policy Action on AI in the Military Domain: https://unidir.org/publication/artificial-intelligence-in-the-military-domain-and-its-implications-for-international-peace-and-security-an-evidence-based-road-map-for-future-policy-action/  

• CCW Group of Governmental Experts on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems: https://meetings.unoda.org/ccw/convention-on-certain-conventional-weapons-group-of-governmental-experts-on-lethal-autonomous-weapons-systems-2025  

• SIPRI’s work on AI and Nuclear Weapons: 
  (i) Pragmatic Approaches to Governance at the Artificial Intelligence–Nuclear Nexus (October 2025): https://www.sipri.org/publications/2025/other-publications/pragmatic-approaches-governance-artificial-intelligence-nuclear-nexus 
  (ii) Advancing Governance at the Nexus of Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear Weapons (March 2025): https://www.sipri.org/publications/2025/sipri-insights-peace-and-security/advancing-governance-nexus-artificial-intelligence-and-nuclear-weapons  

• US Political Declaration on Responsible Military Use of AI (2023): https://www.state.gov/bureau-of-arms-control-deterrence-and-stability/political-declaration-on-responsible-military-use-of-artificial-intelligence-and-autonomy  

• REAIM Call to Action (2023): https://www.government.nl/documents/publications/2023/02/16/reaim-2023-call-to-action 

PodMAPS is a podcast series exploring how artificial intelligence is transforming the military domain, and what it means for international peace and security. 

This second episode focuses on the growing divide between States that develop military AI and those that lack the capacity to do so, and examines what meaningful capacity-building might look like in this space. Guests from the Global South share perspectives on trust deficits, the need to break down silos between technical and policy communities, and examples of effective national AI policy. The conversation also includes who should be included at the table and charts a path forward for inclusive international cooperation.  

Featuring Dr. Yasmin Afina (UNIDIR), Sumaya Nur Adan (Oxford Martin AI Governance Initiative), Major Jamal Hassan (Ministry of Defense, Kenya), Valeria Chiappini (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Chile), and Dr. Saeed Aldhaheri (University of Dubai). Hosted and produced by Ulysse Richard (UNODA) as part of the Military AI, Peace & Security (MAPS) Dialogues, funded by the Republic of Korea. 

All four episodes are now available. Listen to the full series and share it with your network. 

Links: 

• UNIDIR Kaleidoscope Report on REAIM Regional Consultations: https://unidir.org/publication/the-global-kaleidoscope-of-military-ai-governance/  

• UNESCO Readiness Assessment Methodology: https://www.unesco.org/ethics-ai/en/ram  

• Belén Communiqué on Autonomous Weapons Systems (2023): https://www.rree.go.cr/files/includes/files.php?id=2261&tipo=documentos  

• Kenya National AI Strategy: https://kenya.ai/kenya-launches-national-ai-strategy-2025-2026-download-it-here/  

• REAIM Summit 2026: https://www.exteriores.gob.es/en/REAIM2026/Paginas/Cumbre26.aspx 

PodMAPS is a podcast series exploring how artificial intelligence is transforming the military domain, and what it means for international peace and security. 

This first episode explores opportunities and risks of artificial intelligence in the military context. Guests discuss the promises of military AI, including enhanced decision-making and operational effectiveness, before turning to concerns around accountability, unpredictability, and the erosion of human judgment. The episode also explores the role of humans in human-machine interaction and what this means for legal obligations under international humanitarian law.  

Featuring Ambassador Ernst Noorman (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Netherlands), Dr. Michael C. Horowitz (Perry World House, University of Pennsylvania), Dr. Bruce Watson (GC REAIM Commissioner), Georgia Hinds (ICRC), Gaurav Keerthi (RSIS, NTU), Dr. Saeed Aldhaheri (University of Dubai), and Kerstin Vignard (Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory). Hosted and produced by Ulysse Richard (UNODA) as part of the Military AI, Peace & Security (MAPS) Dialogues, funded by the Republic of Korea. 

All four episodes are now available. Listen to the full series and share it with your network. 

Links: 

• Strategic Guidance Report from the Global Commission on Responsible AI in the Military Domain: https://hcss.nl/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/GC-REAIM-Strategic-Guidance-Report-Final-WEB.pdf  

• Definition of trustworthiness by the Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA): https://www.ida.org/research-and-publications/publications/all/t/tr/trust-trustworthiness-and-assurance-of-ai-and-autonomy  

• Learn more about the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs’ work on AI in the military domain: https://disarmament.unoda.org/en/our-work/emerging-challenges/artificial-intelligence-military-domain