In 2022, Vincent Carchidi wrote, “Is Artificial Intelligence Made in Humanity’s Image? Lessons for an AI Military Education,” where he argued that AI has been widely misunderstood through an anthropomorphic bias. Three years later, with the many new developments in AI capabilities, we asked Vincent to reflect on his article.Image: Joint Artificial Intelligence Center blogIn your 2022 article, “Is Artificial Intelligence Made in Humanity’s Image? Lessons for an AI Military Education,” you argue that a rigorous military education on AI should include the study of human cognitive science. Three years later, how has AI military education changed? How does cognitive science education play a role in military education in 2025?The near-total association of “AI” with transformer-based large language models meant that defense organizations suddenly pivoted to framing these models in useful terms, interpreting their outputs appropriately, and finding ways to integrate them.The Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office, in particular, established Task Force Lima for that purpose back in 2023, with their recommendations in part emphasizing an educational approach to AI implementation (the task force was later folded into a permanent, adoption-focused AI Rapid Capabilities Cell in partnership with the Defense Innovation Unit). The White House’s July 2025 AI Action Plan also directed the Department of Defense to establish several educational or education-adjacent efforts, including talent development programs to meet AI workforce requirements, an AI & Autonomous Systems Virtual Proving Ground at the Defense Department, and the cultivation of AI research, development, and talent hubs at senior military colleges.The role of cognitive science will vary across these initiatives. The most fruitful opportunities will be in traditional educational settings, like senior military colleges. More specifically, anything related to autonomous systems stands to benefit. For this area, humans have one data point about what constitutes fully autonomous behavior: themselves. They should study it
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In 2022, Vincent Carchidi wrote, “Is Artificial Intelligence Made in Humanity’s Image? Lessons for an AI Military Education,” where he argued that AI has been widely misunderstood through an anthropomorphic bias. Three years later, with the many new developments in AI capabilities, we asked Vincent to reflect on his article.Image: Joint Artificial Intelligence Center blogIn your 2022 article, “Is Artificial Intelligence Made in Humanity’s Image? Lessons for an AI Military Education,” you argue that a rigorous military education on AI should include the study of human cognitive science. Three years later, how has AI military education changed? How does cognitive science
