A New Battlefield AI Platform Is Set to Change How U.S. Forces Make Selections | JP
The topic of artificial intelligence has fueled both fear and excitement across almost every sector of our society, including the military.
While skeptics are concerned about the ramifications of taking humans out of the equation in war, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth sought to put those fears to rest.
He recently unveiled a new AI-powered tool that he says will accentuate the top-tier training US service members already receive.
Before we get into the specifics, check out what Hegseth had to say in his own words:
Here’s the same video clip as a backup:
🇺🇸 WAR SEC. HEGSETH: U.S. MILITARY TO USE POWERFUL AI TO BOOST LETHALITY AND WIN FUTURE WARS
Imagine if the U.S. military got a super-smart digital teammate that never sleeps.
That’s basically what GenAI-mil is: a new platform that lets American soldiers use powerful AI to… pic.twitter.com/G8pDTURQLo
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) December 9, 2025
The Department of War provided its own direct report about the development:
Visitors to the site will find that what’s available now is a specialized version of the Google AI tool Gemini, Gemini for Government. This version is approved to handle controlled unclassified information. A green banner at the top of the page reminds users of what can and can’t be shared on the site.
In addition to Gemini for Government, the site indicates that other American-made frontier AI capabilities will be available soon.
“There is no prize for second place in the global race for AI dominance,” said Emil Michael, undersecretary of war for research and engineering.
“We are moving rapidly to deploy powerful AI capabilities like Gemini for Government directly to our workforce. AI is America’s next manifest destiny, and we’re ensuring that we dominate this new frontier.”
Access to the site is available only to personnel with a common access card and who are on the War Department’s nonclassified network.
When GenAI was asked, “How will you help the Department of War achieve its mission,” through a user prompt, it replied with a list of capabilities, including, among other things, creating and refining documents, analyzing information, processing and analyzing satellite images, and even auditing computer code for security purposes.
“I can support the DOW’s mission by providing a range of capabilities designed for a secure, high-impact environment,” GenAI replied. “I am ready to support your mission requirements.”
A range of social media reactions touched on both the opportunities and risks of such a program:
AI in defense could be a game changer
— Lina 🦋 (@LinaCrypto_) December 9, 2025
The military is embracing AI in a big way. https://t.co/yfXif0SHMm could significantly enhance capabilities, but it also raises big questions about ethics, oversight, and the future of warfare.
— JusticeInFocus (@ellwahabb) December 9, 2025
Axios also provided some details that might help ease some concerns among critics:
Zoom in: Google Cloud said in a press release that employees can use Gemini for Government for “unclassified work,” such as personnel onboarding, automating administrative tasks and accelerating contract workflows.
- None of the Defense Department’s data will be used to train Google’s public models, the company added.
The big picture: The Defense Department has been rapidly embracing the new generative AI era.
- Emil Michael, the department’s chief technology officer, told reporters at the Defense Writers Group on Monday that he envisions AI tools being used to speed up day-to-day administrative tasks, analyze intelligence, model and simulate conflict.
- In the coming “days and weeks,” Michael told reporters, “we’re going to start pushing deployment of these capabilities directly to the 3 million users at the Pentagon at different classification levels.”
Reality check: The Pentagon was already experimenting with generative AI across its offices and military branches, and Google unveiled a $200 million-ceiling contract with the department in July to deploy its frontier AI tools.
And here’s what Hegseth said over the weekend about the possibility of replacing human service members with AI-powered robots: