AI and terrorism: Why the next security challenge is already here

For years, concerns over artificial intelligence focused on misinformation, cyberattacks and job disruption. Now, researchers and counterterrorism experts warn another risk is rapidly emerging: terrorist groups are increasingly using mainstream AI tools to support planning, logistics and battlefield operations, testing the limits of existing safety guardrails.

Fresh research by University of Cambridge researcher Antonia Juelich, alongside a new report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), suggests extremist groups are moving beyond using AI simply for propaganda or recruitment. Instead, they are increasingly turning to commercially available AI tools to assist with operational tasks