US military confirms AI tools used in Iran war as scrutiny grows

The United States military has confirmed that artificial intelligence is being used during its ongoing war with Iran, as questions mount over civilian casualties and the role of advanced technologies in modern warfare.

Speaking on Wednesday, the head of US Central Command said that AI systems are now part of the operational toolkit used by American forces in the conflict.

“Our war fighters are leveraging a variety of advanced AI tools. These systems help us sift through vast amounts of data in seconds so our leaders can cut through the noise and make smarter decisions faster than the enemy can react,” said Brad Cooper, who leads the US military’s Central Command.

According to Cooper, the technology is being used primarily to process large volumes of information and accelerate decision-making during military operations.

“Humans will always make final decisions on what to shoot and what not to shoot and when to shoot, but advanced AI tools can turn processes that used to take hours and sometimes even days into seconds.”

The confirmation comes at a moment when the conduct of the war is facing increased scrutiny. Calls are growing for an independent investigation into the bombing of a school in southern Iran that reportedly killed more than 170 people, most of them children.

Since the conflict began on February 28, the US-Israeli campaign has killed at least 1,300 people inside Iran.

Although US officials emphasize that humans remain responsible for final targeting decisions, the expanding role of AI in military planning has raised concerns among rights experts and technology analysts.

Previous conflicts have already shown how heavily algorithmic tools can shape modern warfare. Multiple reports have indicated that Israel relied extensively on AI during its war in Gaza, a campaign that has killed more than 72,000 Palestinians since October 2023 and left large parts of the territory devastated.

The humanitarian toll inside Iran continues to grow. On Wednesday, the Iranian Red Crescent Society said that nearly 20,000 civilian buildings and 77 healthcare facilities have been damaged since the bombing campaign began.

Iranian officials say strikes have hit oil depots, street markets, sports venues, schools and a water desalination plant.

At the same time, the Trump administration has been pushing for broader access to advanced technological tools for military use.

The issue has spilled into a high-profile dispute between Washington and the artificial intelligence company Anthropic. The firm had previously held a contract with the Pentagon but insisted that its AI models should not be used for fully autonomous weapons or mass surveillance.

After refusing to remove those restrictions, Anthropic was designated by the US government as a “supply chain risk”, effectively preventing it from doing direct or indirect business with government agencies.

The company has since filed a lawsuit challenging the designation.