ETHICS-2023 Session A1-Panel: Ethics of weapons technology development (Conference Chair's Special Session)

As technologies become increasingly complex they also become less intelligible to non-experts. This necessitates greater trust, on the part of publics, that those who create, operate, and oversee these technologies will develop them in a manner that serves public interests. This is particularly true of weapons of war, given the dire consequences of their use-the destruction of infrastructure, environments, and human bodies. Yet engineering ethics is commonly neglected in this domain, as the exigencies of warfare and national defense are often thought to override such concerns. The ethical challenges that arise from this tension will only become more acute with the rising threat of conflict between major military powers armed with evermore-advanced weaponry.