Part 13/17:
One of Shea’s most striking concerns revolves around emerging technological risks, including artificial intelligence and cyber warfare. Past incidents, like the 1983 Soviet false alarm or the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, highlight how misperceptions or technical glitches could trigger nuclear escalation.
Shea is troubled by the rise of AI, which could disrupt command-and-control systems, inject hallucinated or fabricated data, or cause autonomous decisions with catastrophic consequences. He fears that increasing automation and reliance on AI could lead to trust issues with data, and ultimately, the accidental launch of nuclear weapons. This technological frontier, increasingly intertwined with nuclear security, introduces vulnerabilities that are difficult to foresee and mitigate.