A report from the government watchdog Public Citizen released Friday gives the who, what, when, where, and why of the Pentagon’s flagship Replicator initiative — a program to increase the number of weapons, particularly drones, in the hands of the U.S. military.

In the report, Public Citizen re-ups concerns about one particular aspect of the program. According to the report’s author, Savannah Wooten, the Defense Department has remained ambiguous on the question of whether it is developing artificial intelligence weapons that can “deploy lethal force autonomously — without a human authorizing the specific use of force in a specific context.” These types of weapons are also known as “killer robots.”

“It is not yet clear whether or not these technologies are designed, tested, or intended for killing,” according to the report.

“All signs point to the Pentagon developing ‘killer robots’ via Replicator, despite deflections from Pentagon representatives themselves,” wrote Wooten in the summary of the report.

The program, which was announced last year, is part of the Department of Defense’s plan to deter China.

“Replicator is meant to help us overcome [China’s] biggest advantage, which is mass. More ships. More missiles. More people,” said Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks in a speech announcing the project last year. That mission will be achieved specifically by “mastering the technology of tomorrow,” Hicks said.

There will soon be a “Replicator 2.0” that will focus on counter-drone technologies — per a memo from the defense secretary released in September — according to Public Citizen’s report.

In a letter sent in March, Public........

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