Preface
“Prepare for new, advanced and proven combat theories, weapons and equipment before the war begins, and build an innovative paradigm for intelligent warfare combat theories that is 'new before the war begins'”.
Military scientific theory is essentially combat effectiveness. With the rapid development of artificial intelligence technology, all countries are accelerating the application of military artificial intelligence; this is rapidly leading to a series of innovations in the military field, while promoting the accelerated evolution of “human warfare” towards an “intelligent form”.
Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) theorists explain that "to keep pace with the development of intelligent warfare, the PLA must adapt to changes in technology, war and adversaries, grasp the evolutionary trend of intelligent warfare, master its winning mechanism, dispel the "fog" of intelligent warfare, and efficiently and innovatively develop intelligent warfare theories."
The innovation model of combat theory "innovation due to war" based on the summary of the experience of wars that have occurred or are occurring has not been able to keep up with the pace of evolution of intelligent warfare forms. The innovative content of intelligent warfare operations theory has evolved from "keeping up with the times" to "ahead of the times". Instead, the battlefield of intelligent warfare is constantly expanding from traditional space and time to new space-time fields.
The outcome of combat is moving from being dominated by battlefield space to being dominated by preparation space. Tactical innovation and weapons equipment upgrades are forward-thinking projects with an eye to the future. They are "fighting future wars with future tactics" and will present a "time-ahead and forward" report. Third, the winning mechanism of intelligent warfare has evolved from “victory by tactics” to “victory by algorithms.” The key to the algorithm is "computing power", and this determines "combat power". Transforming tactics into algorithms and consolidating tactics into technology could be the logical starting point for future innovations in operational theories of intelligent warfare. the dominant factors in intelligent warfare have evolved from human "brilliant calculations" to machine "intelligent calculations".
Tactical design will be more integrated into systematic weapons and equipment and iterative training through algorithm design before war. Traditional combat rules will be subverted, bottlenecks limiting operations will be broken, combat effectiveness will be controlled, and the way to win the war will subvert existing cognition.
By Gabriele and Nicola Iuvinale
Deeply understand combat theory's innovative trend of "winning with intelligence"
Fully understanding the development trend of future intelligent warfare is a prerequisite for innovating the combat theory of intelligent warfare.
First, the innovation model of intelligent warfare operations theory has evolved from “innovation because of war” to “innovation before war”. The power of information and intelligence are the key factors in winning intelligent warfare. Weapons and equipment are updated at an accelerated pace thanks to the support of intelligent technology. “Intelligent means” can predict wars that have not yet started. The development and evolution of intelligent warfare have continuously compressed space and time for traditional weapons and tactics. The innovation model of combat theory “innovation due to war” based on the summary of the experience of wars that have occurred or are occurring has not been able to keep up with the pace of evolution of forms of intelligent warfare. The innovation of combat theory as “innovation before war” based on reasonable speculation and scientific deductions will become possible.
Second, the innovative content of intelligent warfare operations theory has evolved from “keeping up with the times” to “ahead of the times”. Innovation in traditional combat theory is based on "what kind of war to fight with what kind of weapons" and studies "the use of current tactics to fight future battles". Tactical innovation and weapons equipment upgrades are almost synchronized or slightly lagging in time, which is a synchronous correlation of "keeping up with the times".
Instead, the battlefield of intelligent warfare is constantly expanding from traditional space and time to new space-time fields. The outcome of combat is moving from being dominated by battlefield space to being dominated by preparation space. Tactical innovation and weapons equipment upgrades are forward-thinking projects with an eye to the future. We are “fighting future wars with future tactics” with a relationship of “anticipating time and moving forward.”
Third, the winning mechanism of intelligent warfare has evolved from “victory by tactics” to “victory by algorithms.”
In intelligent warfare, a large number of unmanned intelligent weapons will take to the battlefield and dominate the direction of war. The key to intelligence is the algorithm. The traditional winning mechanism of "winning with tactics" will be replaced by "winning with algorithm". The key to the algorithm is "computing power", and "computing power" determines "combat power".
The development of intelligent weapons has pushed tactical innovation to move towards the "field of algorithms". Transforming tactics into algorithms and consolidating tactics into technology could be the logical starting point for future innovations in operational theories of intelligent warfare.
Fourth, the dominant factors in intelligent warfare have evolved from human "brilliant calculations" to machine "intelligent calculations". In intelligent warfare, a large number of new weapons and equipment will "appear on the scene". Commanders have limited time to deploy troops to the battlefield, and the "window" for relying on tactics to compensate for technical disadvantages is narrow.
Tactical design will be more integrated into systematic weapons and equipment and iterative training through algorithm design before war. Traditional combat rules will be subverted, bottlenecks limiting operations will be broken, combat effectiveness will be controlled, and the way to win the war will subvert existing cognition. Intelligent weapons and equipment rely on powerful computing power to become a key element of the combat system, and their "intelligent computing" capabilities will surpass the "superb computing capabilities" of humans.
Build a combat theory innovation system that adheres to the principle of "innovation before war"
Innovation in intelligent warfare operational theories should play a leading role in operational concepts, establish a dynamically updated innovation system, and study "how to fight future wars with future tactics".
The first is to build an innovation paradigm that envisions “innovation before battle.” Use intelligent means to visualize the construction of future warfare scenarios, thereby driving innovation in combat theory; a closed cycle of dynamic updating, demonstration and application of combat concepts would be opened, organically integrating them with the research and development of weapons and equipment.
“Prepare for new, advanced and proven combat theories and weapons and equipment before the war begins, and build an innovative paradigm for intelligent warfare combat theories that is 'new before the war begins'”.
The second is to reconstruct the theoretical architecture of the "intelligent unmanned" combat system. “Focusing on changes in future forms of combat, we will update traditional thought patterns, study the winning mechanisms of intelligent warfare, design and we will innovate the application of intelligent weapons and tactics, we will boldly conceive new models of intelligent warfare and we will innovate the theoretical system of unmanned combat and intelligent combat”.
The third is to strengthen the overall management "focused on the core business". Improve and refine operational systems and mechanisms to supervise and promote innovation in operational theories of intelligent warfare, transform operational theory innovation from a special task to a routine one, and ensure that there is a basis for construction and measures for implementation.
The fourth is to create an academic ecology of “open innovation”. “We must fully develop academic democracy, open the door to innovation in operational theory, adhere to the principle of seeking truth in facts, comply with quality standards, mobilize staff to widely participate in the development of operational concepts, pool wisdom, innovate and make progress, so as to promote the iterative updating of operational concepts.”
The third is the pre-algorithm program. The winner of an intelligent war must be the one who has the ability to "win with algorithms", and better tactics must be developed through better algorithms.
Building a combat theory innovation platform to support "ahead of the times"
The development of technologies such as war games and virtual simulations has made "advanced" research into tactics possible, and combat laboratories have become the main battlefield for innovation in future combat theories.
The first is to increase the construction of combat laboratories. Innovation in combat theory is a pre-practical study of warfare. In the past, due to limitations in means, it was difficult to conduct scientific deductions about combat. With the iterative development and improvement of wargaming and simulation systems, virtual simulation technology is used to realistically set future battle scenarios and allow warring parties to better simulate clashes.
“By building a combat laboratory and creating a pre-practice platform for combat innovation, we can not only conduct in-depth simulations and demonstrations and scientific evaluations of innovative tactics, test the feasibility of combat theories and make suggestions for improvement, but also use the deep learning function of the intelligent deduction system to simulate possible situations of future warring parties, innovate tactics in comparison deductions, propose new combat concepts, and promote in-depth innovation of combat theories.”
The second is to establish a mechanism for the synchronous integration of science and technology. Innovation in combat theory and research and development of weapons and equipment must be integrated simultaneously, and tactics must be "finalized" and "materialized" into the technical and combat performance of weapons and equipment, so as to blur and reduce the difference between war preparation and war practice as much as possible.
“We will open all links to convert advanced combat concepts to the actual combat effectiveness of troops, and create a new quality combat effectiveness generation mechanism, from concept proposal to experimental troop establishment, evaluation and demonstration, exercise testing, real case training and special training. We must carefully monitor the development of advanced technologies from the perspective of combining technology and tactics, and actively integrate humanity's most advanced technologies and ideas into the development of weapons and equipment and the innovation of combat theory.”
The third is to establish a research and development mechanism that integrates research and training. Research and development of weapons and equipment must be carried out in accordance with the latest developed combat concepts, starting from the demonstration phase. Professional combat personnel must propose research and development needs for weapons and equipment and participate in demonstration and consultation throughout the process. Technical R&D personnel must also participate in troop weapons and equipment training and exercises, master the effective use of equipment, promote the improvement and upgrading of equipment, and form a highly integrated combat and technical R&D mechanism in which technical personnel follow training and exercises, and tactical personnel participate in research and discussion.
Effectively strengthen the innovative application of the combat theory of "integration of science and technology"
Tactical innovation in the "field of algorithms" of intelligent warfare and the "new innovation model of combat theory before the battle" require to "get ahead of the curve" and pre-develop intelligent weapons and equipment, as well as incorporate new combat theories into the research and development of weapons and equipment.
The first is preventive tactical innovation. Innovations in intelligent combat theories are driving the emergence of new intelligent weapons and equipment. Based on the win-win mechanism, advanced technology materializes into intelligent weapons and equipment in accordance with tactical requirements, and tactical effects are realized through performance upgrades of weapons and equipment, so as to gain combat advantages over the enemy in advance. Tactical innovation is moved from the battlefield to demonstration meetings, laboratories and training grounds, and to key program algorithms that control intelligent weapons and equipment. The battlefield is transformed into a stage to showcase the results of technological and tactical innovation. The second concerns the performance of the front equipment. Develop intelligent unmanned weapons and equipment that can adapt to various space environments, maneuver rapidly, carry out precision strikes and resist complex electromagnetic interference, so that they have the ability to learn, adapt and respond autonomously and can be iteratively upgraded with technical support.
The third is the pre-algorithm program. The winner of an intelligent war must be the one who has the ability to "win with algorithms", and better tactics must be developed through better algorithms. Advanced algorithms will greatly improve the "thinking ability" of intelligent weapons and equipment, thereby improving the combat effectiveness of equipment. On the battlefields of the future, a large number of weapons and equipment will be calculated and they will adapt their actions quickly according to plans. For example, drone “swarm” tactics, without the support of powerful algorithms, will have difficulty achieving autonomous cluster combat, autonomous route planning, autonomous target identifications, autonomous mission acceptances, autonomous attack launches, and autonomous dynamic adaptations.
Coming together to create a 'highly intelligent and versatile' combat theory innovation team
Intelligent warfare is still warfare conducted under human guidance, using science, technology, intelligent weapons and equipment, and remains essentially a violent conflict in human society. “To accelerate the innovation of combat theory, we must maximize the concentration of wisdom and strength. In other words, only by training a group of talents in combat theory can we study war, understand it and win it. First and foremost, a commander with extensive practical experience."
Innovation in operational theory is a unique skill of the commander and an intrinsic requirement for victory. Commanders are the brains of the army and determine its direction of development and combat concepts. In particular, senior commanders need to strengthen knowledge and update concepts, keep pace with the development trend of intelligent warfare, grasp the latest developments in intelligent technology, understand the latest developments in intelligent weapons and equipment, innovate strategies and tactics to win intelligent wars, and keep pace with the pace of intelligent warfare development. The second group consists of commanders and fighters who fight the enemy on the front lines. Ranking officers and soldiers are closest to the battlefield and have the most dynamic innovations. “To maximize the benefits of innovation in combat theory for war preparation, we must pay attention to stimulating and mobilizing the enthusiasm of rank-and-file officers and soldiers on the front line in real military combat and on the front line in training, and vigorously improve the level of combat personnel in the use of intelligent weapons and equipment.” Intelligent weapons and equipment are different from traditional weapons and equipment. They require more professional operators and more precise application methods to achieve optimal combat effectiveness. They must integrate the functions of combatant commanders, equipment R&D designers, and warfighters to achieve seamless reorganization and control of future operations.
The third is made up of professional and sophisticated researchers. High-quality professional researchers are the highest peaks of theoretical innovation. In order to choose the pearls of military theory, it is necessary to create a phalanx of theoretical research experts. By building a combat theory innovation team based on "small core, large scope", which carefully matches needs, tactics and technologies, and rapidly transforms intelligent science and technology into intelligent weapons and equipment and intelligent combat capabilities, it is possible to eliminate the "time gap" in transforming technology into weapons and achieve a virtuous interaction between research, use and training.
Source: Liberation Army Daily
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