Stove-Piped Systems Will Strangle Advanced AI in the Cradle

Deploying advanced AI technologies like machine learning in isolated, stove-piped defense systems severely limits their potential. These closed systems prevent interoperability, hindering the ability to address complex, higher-order challenges like defending against an AI-controlled drone swarm. Using a hypothetical US-China conflict, the analysis shows that AI agents require open standards and protocols to communicate, coordinate actions, and present a common operating picture for commanders. Without a shift to open platforms, the U.S. military cannot fully harness AI for critical capabilities like persistent targeting and real-time combat adaptation, leaving it vulnerable in future conflicts.