TECHWAR – Technological Dimensions of War: Legal, Ethical and Conceptual Challenges

The impact of the cybernetic dimension is transforming warfare into a practice far removed from its traditional conception. This phenomenon raises enormous problems of conceptualization and legal framing. Artificial intelligence and human-machine interaction are transforming contemporary armed conflicts. As evidence from the battlefields shows, with the massive use of autonomous weapon systems (AWS) and sophisticated war machines, algorithmic warfare can no longer be considered a dystopian reality. As the application of AI on the battlefield reduces (or multiplies) the scale of human agency, the fundamental categories of state responsibility and criminal individual liability provided by international law and international criminal law are being challenged.

Law
Political Science

Social Sciences

Weekly

11/05/2025

Giuseppe Di Vetta, Gaia Fiorinelli

The Seasonal School will engage students in exploring the legal meaning of the technological development of conflict and warfare, particularly from the perspectives of international law, criminal law and international criminal law. Students will find an interactive and cross-disciplinary learning environment that enables a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of the burning issues addressed by the Seasonal School. The Seasonal School combines traditional teaching methods with active learning techniques. The face-to-face classes always include moments of interaction between faculty and students aimed at discussing the texts and materials made available to the participants. Participants will be involved in group research activities aimed at preparing short presentations on some of the topics covered in the Seasonal School.The Seasonal School aims to provide participants with a critical and interdisciplinary understanding of the legal challenges posed by the technological dimensions that characterize contemporary conflicts.

The main target of the Seasonal School is represented by undergraduate, postgraduate, and PhD students from different backgrounds.

1 WEEK

5

4

20

English

In progress

Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna

Gaetana Morgante, Francesca Capone, Emanuele Sommario, Luca Raineri, Lorenzo Gasparri, Andrea Vandin, Andrea Bertolini, Giorgio Buttazzo, Alessandro Biondi

Institute of Law, Politics and Development

Piazza martiri della Libertà 33 - Pisa