In 1984, James Cameron introduced audiences to The Terminator, a film about an artificial intelligence system—Skynet—that becomes self-aware and triggers a global catastrophe. But today, as military AI evolves rapidly with limited oversight, Cameron’s warning is gaining uncomfortable relevance. Cameron’s concerns echo those outlined in a 2023 report by the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), which confirmed that at least nine countries are developing or actively testing lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS). Libya Incident Underscores Growing ConcernsOne of the earliest suspected cases of lethal autonomous action came in Libya in 2020. Unlike nuclear weapons, however, autonomous systems are far easier to develop and deploy.