A New Way of War: The Swarmers

Abstract

It seems that the future of warfare is in the hands of technology: drones and machines in general are likely to be among the major players in tomorrow’s battlefield. However, those who believe that human beings will be completely deprived of the art of war are mistaken. In the future, humans will not be mere players from behind the scenes. The human factor will be decisive, just as it was in the days of Alexander III, Julius Caesar, and Napoleon Bonaparte. Obviously a “new military figure” is needed, one who is capable of combining different ideas in an efficient and successful way. This article seeks to outline this figure on the basis of two fundamental concepts. Consideration will be given to swarming, a tactic used since antiquity and now used primarily for drones, and human-machine teaming, a concept that is gaining momentum in the fields of military science and technology. The intent here is to understand if these ideas can generate a new player capable of interpreting—and winning—future warfare.