Article analyzes the PLA's focus on artificial intelligence and cognitive operations, suggesting implications for U.S.–China competition.
China’s 2020 Science of Military Strategy codifies “intelligentization” (智能化) as the defining paradigm of future conflict. This article analyzes the doctrinal elevation of artificial intelligence, autonomy, and cognitive operations as core to People’s Liberation Army modernization. It highlights the historical shift from informatization, explores PLA experiments with unmanned and AI-enabled systems, and assesses implications for U.S.–China competition and East Asian stability. By examining SMS 2020’s integration of cognitive warfare and intelligentized command, the article situates the text as both a doctrinal milestone and a strategic signal of China’s evolving approach to military innovation.
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Peyton Mayer (2025) studied this question.
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