CIA Deputy Director Michael Ellis tells Threat Status it is “still unclear” when artificial general intelligence will be here, but the agency is gearing up for the arrival of AI systems that perform at least as well as humans across all cognitive domains. 

He says such new technology could particularly affect defenders and attackers in cyberspace and drones used in warfare. “I think it does have a potential to be a true game changer, if it emerges, and one that will fundamentally reshape the intelligence business but national security more broadly,” Mr. Ellis said in an interview with Mr. Lovelace.

China’s government and industry are racing toward AGI and pursuing superintelligence, which theoretically could outperform humans. The CIA, meanwhile, is leaving no stone unturned in its efforts to understand and harness AGI. 

“I can’t get into the specifics of exactly what we’re looking into or working on in terms of those alternate approaches, but I will say that we do take a very broad look at this topic,” said Mr. Ellis. “And our in-house [research and development] folks — we’ve got our [Directorate] of Science and Technology, we’ve got our CIA Labs, you look at In-Q-Tel making investments — we’re taking a broad look at all of these different approaches.” The Threat Status influencers series featured an exclusive video interview last year with In-Q-Tel CEO Steve Bowsher exploring how the CIA is tapping advanced-tech private sector ingenuity that’s reshaping the world.

Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg says he can build a powerful new superintelligence that he hopes will augment people’s lives. Researchers and technologists apply different definitions to superintelligence, but it is largely understood as a powerful artificial intelligence system that can outperform humans as measured across a variety of tasks.

“Developing superintelligence is now in sight,” Mr. Zuckerberg wrote in a letter posted this week on Meta’s website. “It seems clear that in the coming years, AI will improve all our existing systems and enable the creation and discovery of new things that aren’t imaginable today.”

The billionaire founder of Facebook has heavily invested in AI. He has poached leading researchers from other companies and reportedly made at least one offer of a salary exceeding $1 billion to recruit for his superintelligence agenda. His memo outlines a vision for creating a new powerful tech system that would be focused on augmenting humans’ tasks rather than automating their work. 

Chinese scientists have been developing stealth submarines armed with space-shooting lasers as part of Beijing’s plans to counter what the Chinese Communist Party sees as the powerful threat posed by Mr. Musk’s network of Starlink communications satellites. The Associated Press reports that China is also working on supply-chain sabotage strategies and custom-built attack satellites armed with ion thrusters.

The news agency notes that Chinese researchers are not the only ones concerned about Starlink, which has a stranglehold on certain space-based communications. Some traditional U.S. allies are also questioning the wisdom of handing over core communications infrastructure — and a potential trove of data — to a company run by an unpredictable foreign businessman whose allegiances are not always clear.

With regard to the CCP, its primary concern centers on Starlink’s potential use by adversaries in a military confrontation and for spying. Chinese researchers have published dozens of papers in public journals during recent years exploring ways to hunt and destroy Mr. Musk’s satellites, an AP review found.

Canada’s Ontario province has canceled a satellite high-speed internet service contract with Mr. Musk’s Starlink worth nearly $70 million amid the Trump administration’s threat to impose U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods. Ontario had signed the deal with Starlink last November, which would have provided internet access to more than 15,000 homes in the province.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford threatened to end the Starlink contract back in February following Mr. Trump’s decision to slap a 25% tariff on most goods coming into the U.S. from Canada. Mr. Ford delayed the cancellation after the Trump administration agreed to a 30-day tariff pause later that month.

Canadian and U.S. negotiators are currently working out a trade agreement that is expected to be finalized on Friday, when Mr. Trump has promised to hit most Canadian goods not covered by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement with a 35% tariff.

It seems like the Israelis “may have a problem with stray ammunition across Gaza. Unfortunately, though, quantifying that problem is difficult,” writes Michael McKenna, an opinion columnist for The Washington Times. “The Gaza Ministry of Health, which is controlled by Hamas, estimates that more than 60,000 Palestinians have died in the conflict to date. It is easy to understand why that number is viewed with some suspicion.

“It is much, much more difficult to understand why the Israeli government either doesn’t have or doesn’t want to share how many Palestinians may have died since October 2023,” writes Mr. McKenna.

“The reticence isn’t likely to be about a lack of data. Way back in January, a study in The Lancet indicated that 64,000 souls had perished in the conflict, and that was six months ago,” he writes. “At that time, our friends at Politico reached out to the Israeli government for comment on the study or the topic more generally. To date, they have received no comment.”

• July 31 — How Congress Can Rebuild U.S. Shipbuilding and Boost Maritime Security, Hudson Institute

• July 31 — Breaking Out of Quarantine: Wargaming a Chinese Blockade of Taiwan, Center for Strategic & International Studies

• Aug. 5 — Misinformation: What Is It and What Should We Do About It? Cato Institute

• Aug. 5-7 — 2025 Space & Missile Defense Symposium, SMD Symposium

• Aug. 11-13 — Ai4 2025: Artificial Intelligence Industry Event, Ai4

• Aug. 13 — The U.S. Space Force’s Jonathan Farrow on the U.S. Space Warfighting Framework, Atlantic Council