Iran Is Draining America’s Missile Defenses (w/ Paul Scharre, Former US Army Ranger)

Between cheap-to-produce drones and artificial intelligence, the future of warfare may already be here. Paul Scharre, former US Army Ranger and executive vice president of the Center for a New American Strategy, joins former head of MI6 Sir Richard Dearlove and co-host John Raine to discuss how drones and AI are reshaping military conflict and militaries themselves. Scharre explains why cheap drones are beating expensive armies, how the cost asymmetry between offense and defense is reshaping the battlefield, and why the US may be losing its technological edge faster than it realizes. He also assesses Ukraine's drone revolution, the race between the US and China to adopt military AI, and why keeping humans in the loop may matter more than any weapon system.

In this episode:

(00:00) Cost Equation of Modern Warfare

(02:39) Defining the Present State of Warfare

(04:18) How Militaries Are Dealing with AI

(06:24) Technology Reshaping US Military Education

(09:11) Evolution of Drone Technology

(14:45) Cost of Countermeasures

(18:06) Likelihood of Protracted Warfare

(20:38) Redefining Victory in Modern Warfare

(22:20) Adversarial Distillation

(25:15) Strategic Balance Between US and China