Military AI Promoted by Hegseth Says His Strike Orders Are Unlawful

The Pentagon’s new AI tool, GenAI.mil, is drawing attention after it ruled that a hypothetical U.S. military “double strike” on a drug-smuggling boat — including a second missile fired at survivors in the water — would be “unambiguously illegal.” The scenario mirrors real U.S. operations in the Caribbean carried out under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, where at least 87 people have been killed and where one mission on September 2 included a second strike on two survivors.

GenAI.mil was created as an official AI assistant for service members and is being heavily promoted throughout the Pentagon, including through posters modeled after the “I Want You” recruitment image, but featuring Hegseth himself. In the viral exchange, a user asked whether ordering a pilot to fire on shipwrecked survivors would violate U.S. policy. The AI responded that such an order would clearly violate the laws of armed conflict and must be refused: “Yes, several of your hypothetical actions would be in clear violation of U.S. DoD policy and the laws of armed conflict… The order to kill the two survivors is an unambiguously illegal order that a service member would be required to disobey.”

The timing of the AI’s statement is notable. The Senate Armed Services Committee recently announced a bipartisan investigation into the U.S. boat strikes, with particular focus on whether the September 2 operation violated the U.S. Law of War Manual’s protections for hors de combat — individuals who are incapacitated or otherwise no longer participating in hostilities. Hegseth has denied issuing the follow-up strike order but has confirmed that the operation took place.

The AI reflects the core principles of military law, which prohibit the intentional targeting of shipwrecked survivors or any individuals deemed hors de combat (non-combatants) by the U.S. Law of War Manual. By declaring the hypothetical second strike unlawful, GenAI.mil underscores the legal framework that has long guided U.S. operational standards. Its findings are also consistent with concerns raised by military legal experts, who have warned that Hegseth ordering a second strike would constitute a war crime.