THE government’s £1 billion investment in battlefield AI could make violence “more opaque, less accountable, and increasingly automated,” campaigners warned today.

Ahead of its strategic defence review, the government announced that it would pour substantial funds into AI-powered targeting systems.

The Ministry of Defence said that a new “digital targeting web” would better link weapons systems and allow battlefield decisions to be “made and executed faster.”

Dr Iain Overton, from Action on Armed Violence, warned that the move “reflects a worrying acceleration of algorithmic warfare” — a development that “risks leaving civilians more exposed than ever before while sidelining public debate and democratic oversight.”

He said: “These digital targeting webs, already used in Gaza and Ukraine, collapse the gap between surveillance and strike, erasing crucial lines of accountability and civilian protection.

“Without robust regulation and real transparency, this digital pivot in British defence policy threatens to make violence more opaque, less accountable, and increasingly automated.

“What is always notable in these defence reviews is how little civilians are mentioned or considered.”

Ahead of the review’s publication on Monday, the government announced that it would also invest another £1.5bn on building six weapons factories and procure 7,000 long-range weapons.

Defence Secretary John Healey said the move would enable Britain to “better deter our adversaries.”

The government’s munitions spend is set to hit £6bn this parliament.

The substantial funding boost comes amid ongoing plans to increase defence spending to 3 per cent of GDP by the next parliament.

Chris Cole, founder of Drone Wars UK, said: “Now, at a time when public services are being slashed to the bone, handing over vast sums of public money to military corporations to build new factories and develop new weaponry without proper public scrutiny will undoubtedly be seen by many as deeply illegitimate.”

A briefing by Drone Wars warned that trusting AI systems in a military context without human oversight “is likely to result in very serious errors” and this requirement will likely render any financial savings virtually redundant.

The non-governmental organisation said it had seen a marked decline in transparency regarding the use of armed drones, with freedom of information requests regularly refused on national security grounds.

Mr Cole said: “At the same time as this massive increase in spending on high-tech weaponry, we are seeing a real decline in transparency around UK military operations and the UK’s involvement in other states’ wars.

“The [2016] Chilcot inquiry found that without proper transparency around Britain’s military affairs, neither Parliament nor public could properly hold the government to account, leading to a real loss of legitimacy and confidence.”