India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh says that even as artificial intelligence reshapes the battlefield, the outcome of war will still come down to people, not machines.
Speaking on Saturday, Singh said that future wars may be fought with artificial intelligence, but they will still be won by national resolve, trained soldiers and robust military power, according to Business Standard.
The New Indian Express, reporting from Visakhapatnam, framed his remarks similarly: future wars may be shaped by AI, but victory will still depend on national resolve, trained personnel and strong military capability.
The comments position AI as a tool that changes how conflicts are fought rather than a force that decides who prevails. In Singh's telling, technology can influence the conduct of war, but human commitment and a well-prepared armed force remain the deciding factors.
The brief remarks, as reported by both outlets, do not detail specific programs, weapons systems or spending. Instead, they read as a statement of doctrine and priorities from India's top defence official at a moment when militaries around the world are weighing how far to lean on automation and machine intelligence.
Why it matters: as governments race to add AI to their arsenals, one of the world's largest militaries is signaling that it sees trained troops and national will — not algorithms alone — as what ultimately wins wars.