Pentagon Could Waste $55 Billion on Autonomous Weapons Transition

Military experts are sounding the alarm about a potential $55 billion mistake as the Pentagon moves toward autonomous warfare technology. Unlike past military transitions where the U.S. could afford costly delays and corrections, the shift to robot weapons may not allow that luxury.

The warning comes as the Pentagon continues its streak of failed financial audits. Government reports show the military cannot account for 63% of nearly $4 trillion in assets. In one audit, inspectors found the Pentagon couldn't track $2 billion in spending from just a $4 billion slice of the Marines' budget.

The military's spending problems run deep. Recent audits found the armed services overspent on spare parts by nearly $1 billion. They bought $767 million worth of parts they didn't need and spent $355 million on parts without knowing they needed them.

Pentagon accounting records are so messy that billions of dollars simply disappear from the books, according to government watchdogs. The military has never passed a full financial audit since Congress required them in 2018.

Experts worry that the move to autonomous weapons could repeat these expensive mistakes on a massive scale, but with less time to recover from errors.