Richard Moore, the chief of Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service, known as MI6, answers questions in November 2021 at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. AP/MATT DUNHAM/FILE
PRAGUE (AP) — British spies are already using artificial intelligence to hamper the supply of weapons to Russia, the head of Britain’s MI6 agency said this week, predicting that Western intelligence agencies will increasingly have to focus on tracking the malign use of AI by hostile states.

In a rare public speech, Richard Moore also urged Russians who oppose the invasion of Ukraine to spy for Britain, saying others had already done so since the war began.
“Our door is always open,” he said.

In a speech that depicted artificial intelligence as both a huge potential asset and a major threat, Moore said his staff at Britain’s foreign intelligence agency “are combining their skills with AI and bulk data to identify and disrupt the flow of weapons to Russia for use against Ukraine.”

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Moore called China the “single most important strategic focus” for his agency and said, “we will increasingly be tasked with obtaining intelligence on how hostile states are using AI in damaging, reckless and unethical ways.”

Moore, who has previously warned that the West was falling behind rivals in the AI race, said his service “together with our allies, intends to win the race to master the ethical and safe use of AI.”
But he said AI would not replace the need for human spies, arguing that the “human factor” will remain crucial in an era of rapidly evolving machine learning.

“As AI trawls the ocean of open source, there will be even greater value in landing, with a well-cast fly, the secrets that lie beyond the reach of its nets,” he said.

He argued that “the unique characteristics of human agents in the right places will become still more significant,” highlighting spies’ ability to “influence decisions inside a government or terrorist group.”

Moore also told an audience Wednesday at the British ambassador’s residence in Prague that Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine had run out of steam and “there appears to be little prospect of the Russian forces regaining momentum.”
He said Ukraine’s counteroffensive was proving “a hard grind” against strong Russian defenses, but he was optimistic it would succeed.

Moore said the government of President Vladimir Putin was beset by “venality, infighting and callous incompetence” and the mutiny by Wagner Group mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin had “exposed the inexorable decay of the unstable autocracy over which Putin presides.”

He said Putin was “under pressure” after the brief rebellion and the “humiliating” deal he struck with the help of Belarus to end it. The Kremlin says Prigozhin attended a military meeting in Moscow with Putin after the mutiny.

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