Experts warn AI is making it easier for adversaries to target US military

AI is changing the military threat picture

Artificial intelligence can sort information in seconds that once took people much longer to review. That speed is drawing attention from national security experts and officials.

A recent Anthropic investigation found an Iran-linked actor used Claude to analyze public information about U.S. naval forces. The account was banned, and information was shared with authorities.

How AI entered the case

The actor used Claude to gather and analyze publicly available information and organize it into material about U.S. naval movements. Anthropic described the activity as open-source intelligence and reconnaissance.

The compiled material included personnel information taken from captions on public military photographs, publicly accessible ship and aircraft transponder identifiers, commercial satellite-imagery query scripts, and an inventory of public websites exposing U.S. naval movements. Anthropic said it disrupted the account after detecting the activity.

The information was already public

The case did not involve a reported breach of classified military systems. Instead, the actor worked with information that was already accessible through public sources.

AI changed the speed of the process. A language model could help organize large amounts of material and produce structured outputs faster than traditional manual research alone.

AI can process huge data sets

Modern AI systems can rapidly sort, summarize and compare large amounts of information. That ability has applications beyond military operations, including research, business and cybersecurity.

The national security community is watching this capability because intelligence work often involves combining information from many sources. AI can help analysts identify patterns that might otherwise take longer to review.

Experts see a wider pattern

The naval case is part of a broader pattern involving AI misuse by state-aligned actors. Anthropic reported other Iranian operations involving surveillance, cyber activity and influence campaigns.

Recorded Future also assessed that AI enhanced several existing Iranian capabilities during 2026. Its analysis found the clearest effects in cyber operations and information campaigns rather than battlefield operations.

Iran has used AI for influence

Anthropic identified Iranian state-aligned accounts using Claude to prepare influence campaigns. The operations included creating plans, translating material and making content appear to come from independent sources.

The company said one campaign surrounding the 2026 conflict falsely attributed claims to Western research institutions. The activity was designed to make state-backed messages appear more credible.

AI is not creating every threat

Experts caution that AI does not automatically create entirely new military capabilities. Instead, it can improve the speed, scale or efficiency of activities that already exist.

Recorded Future reached a similar conclusion about Iran in 2026. Its assessment said AI generally enhanced established cyber and influence methods rather than fundamentally changing Iran’s strategy.

Little-known fact: The U.S. military has used AI to help analyze drone footage and identify objects, showing how AI can support human decision-making on the battlefield.

AI can also help defenders

The same technology that helps attackers can support people trying to stop them. Security teams can use AI to examine information, identify patterns and improve response times.

The U.S. intelligence community says AI will increasingly shape cyber operations, with both attackers and defenders using the technology. CISA also promotes information sharing around emerging AI cybersecurity risks.

The Pentagon is studying AI risks

The Defense Department is also examining how AI-enabled systems could be attacked. Its research includes work on vulnerabilities that could affect military AI systems in realistic environments.

That matters because AI can become part of larger systems rather than operating alone. Security researchers therefore study both the software and the surrounding technology used with it.

Fun fact: DARPA helped develop GPS technology for military use before it became a navigation tool on smartphones.

Public data can still matter

Information does not have to be classified to have security value. When separate public details are combined, they can provide a more complete picture than any single source.

That challenge is not unique to AI. What has changed is the ability to automate collection, organization and analysis, making large information sets easier to process quickly.

AI access crosses borders

Anthropic said Iranian state-aligned influence actors accessed Claude even though access from within Iran is blocked. The company reported that those actors used VPNs and foreign phone numbers to register and verify accounts.

That example shows why AI security cannot depend only on geographic restrictions. Companies also need safeguards capable of detecting suspicious behavior and misuse after accounts are created.

The US is working on countermeasures

U.S. agencies are developing ways to protect AI systems and military operations from emerging threats. CISA has encouraged information sharing between government, industry and other partners.

The intelligence community also expects AI to change the threat environment further. Officials say keeping humans in control of AI-enabled systems will remain an important security goal.

Curious how these security changes connect to military readiness? Find out why the military draft registration will become automatic in December, sparking renewed discussions about policy and military readiness.

The AI security race is growing

The latest cases show why AI has become a national security concern. The technology can help organize information, support cyber operations and expand influence campaigns.

For the U.S. military, the challenge is balancing AI’s benefits with new risks. As models improve, security teams will need to keep adapting how they protect systems.

Curious how military decisions are affecting communities closer to home? Check out why Trump’s domestic military deployments draw concern from Ohio troops.

What do you think about AI changing the security landscape? Share your thoughts in the comments and let us know where you think the biggest challenge lies.

This slideshow was made with AI assistance and human editing.

Read More From This Brand:

• America’s AI boom is bringing an unexpected windfall to nearby homeowners
• How AI is reshaping management roles at United Airlines
• AI is straining America’s power grid, and the 2026 buildout is forcing a hard rethink