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PreprintCited by 119International Law and Human RightsMilitary Strategy and TechnologyWar, Ethics, and Justification

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Law and Ethics for Autonomous Weapon Systems: Why a Ban Won't Work and How the Laws of War Can

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Anderson, Kenneth, Waxman, Matthew C.·2013·SSRN Electronic Journal
DOI 10.2139/ssrn.2250126
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Abstract

Public debate is heating up over the future development of autonomous weapon systems. Some concerned critics portray that future, often invoking science-fiction imagery, as a plain choice between a world in which those systems are banned outright and a world of legal void and ethical collapse on the battlefield. Yet an outright ban on autonomous weapon systems, even if it could be made effective, trades whatever risks autonomous weapon systems might pose in war for the real, if less visible, risk of failing to develop forms of automation that might make the use of force more precise and less harmful for civilians caught near it. Grounded in a more realistic assessment of technology — acknowledging what is known and what is yet unknown — as well as the interests of the many international and domestic actors involved, this paper outlines a practical alternative: the gradual evolution of codes of conduct based on traditional legal and ethical principles governing weapons and warfare. This essay revises and significantly extends an earlier, short Policy Review article by Anderson & Waxman from 2012, also posted to SSRN at http://ssrn.com/abstract=2046375, "Law and Ethics for Robot Soldiers."

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Research works printed but not linked: 50

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Cited by

  • The Ethics of AI Ethics -- An Evaluation of Guidelines

    Hagendorff, T. (2019) · arXiv · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1903.03425 · Cited by 1,907

    “reas (Pistono and Yampolskiy 2016; Amodei et al. 2017). Leading, of course, is the military use of AI in cyber warfare or regarding weaponized unmanned vehicles or drones (Ernest and Carroll 2016; K. Anderson and Waxman 2013). According to media reports, the US government alone intends to invest two billion dollars in…”
    Background

  • The Ethics of AI Ethics: An Evaluation of Guidelines

    Hagendorff, T. (2020) · Minds and Machines · doi:10.1007/s11023-020-09517-8 · Cited by 1,911

    “reas (Pistono and Yampolskiy 2016; Amodei et al. 2017). Leading, of course, is the military use of AI in cyber warfare or regarding weaponized unmanned vehicles or drones (Ernest and Carroll 2016; K. Anderson and Waxman 2013). According to media reports, the US government alone intends to invest two billion dollars in…”
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See all 119

Metadata

Authors
Anderson, K., & Waxman, M. C.
Affiliations
  • American University (US)
  • Columbia University (US)
Corresponding author
Waxman, Matthew C.
ORCID
Anderson, Kenneth
Venue
SSRN Electronic Journal
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2013
ISSN
1556-5068 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.2139/ssrn.2250126
OpenAlex
W1575390301
Cited by
119
References
0
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 19 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 23 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 7 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 5 · 2014: 7
Type
posted content
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • SSRN Electronic Journal (acceptedVersion)
  • eYLS (Yale Law School) (submittedVersion)
  • eYLS (Yale Law School) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nd)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › International Law and Human Rights
  • Physical Sciences › Engineering › Control and Systems Engineering › Military Strategy and Technology
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Philosophy › War, Ethics, and Justification
Keywords
autonomous weapons, international humanitarian law, ethics of war, codes of conduct, military robotics, civilian harm, use of force

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CoChat. (2026). Citation check: Law and Ethics for Autonomous Weapon Systems: Why a Ban Won't Work and How the Laws of War Can. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.2139/ssrn.2250126
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Anderson, K., & Waxman, M. C. (2013). Law and Ethics for Autonomous Weapon Systems: Why a Ban Won't Work and How the Laws of War Can. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2250126

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