U.S. Media: Houthi Forces Use AI to Enhance Combat Power

According to a report by Reference News Network on September 22, the U.S. New York Times website reported on September 15 that the Houthi armed group in Yemen is learning to arm itself.

The report states that, in most people's impressions, the image of the Houthi armed group is: a group of men standing in the back of a pickup truck, pulling the trigger of an AK-47 rifle towards the desert sky. However, this armed organization has already been able to launch long-range missiles at Israel, located 1,000 miles (approximately 1,600 kilometers) away, and use drones to disrupt shipping in the Red Sea. There is evidence that they are developing more advanced weapons independently, using methods such as artificial intelligence (AI), to reduce their reliance on Iran.

Despite receiving support from Iran, the Houthi armed group had remained on the sidelines for months after the outbreak of the U.S.-Israel-Iran war. This situation changed in July when they announced a maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia. Since then, the Houthis have advanced southward, capturing the important Yemeni port city of Mocha last week, while also controlling islands near the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, further strengthening their control over this vital shipping route at the southern end of the Red Sea.

According to reports, at a forum held by the Middle East Institute in the U.S., Timothy Lenderking, a former U.S. special envoy for Yemen, stated when discussing the Houthi armed group: “They seize every opportunity to build and test their capabilities, and they are now the strongest non-state armed force in the entire Middle East.”

A recent report by the U.S. company Anthropic on the issue of AI misuse states that a group in northern Yemen, where the Houthi armed group is based, has been using the “Claude” model to develop guided weapons. The company indicated that despite having safety mechanisms in place, they have not been able to stop this group's work, which has now progressed to the test-firing stage of guided rockets.

The most sophisticated components of the Houthis' drones and ballistic missiles still rely on supplies from Iran, but the Anthropic report shows that the organization's weapon development level has significantly improved in recent years.

This has given the Houthi armed group greater flexibility, allowing them to continue to confront Yemeni and Saudi adversaries during the U.S. Navy's months-long blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, while also threatening targets in Israel and the U.S.

Reports indicate that as early as ten years ago, the Houthi armed group began testing unmanned surface vessels with the help of Iranian advisors. After the Houthis captured Yemen's capital, Sana'a, in 2014, Saudi Arabia led the formation of a military coalition to support the Yemeni government in countering the Houthis. In 2022, both sides announced a ceasefire, but experts say the Houthis took advantage of the ceasefire window to significantly enhance their combat capabilities.

Peter Salisbury, an associate professor at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs, said: “After the Yemen ceasefire agreement took effect in 2022, the quantity of materials for manufacturing weapons entering Yemen skyrocketed, and the number of transport routes increased exponentially.”

Initially, Yemen was merely a testing ground for Iranian weapons. Gradually, it has begun to resemble an arms factory. Salisbury noted that large components like missile launchers can now be produced in areas controlled by the Houthis, eliminating the need for transportation from Iran.

He stated: “For equipment like one-way attack drones, they have gradually achieved localized production.”

Kevin Donegan, a former commander of the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet, said: “Many materials no longer need to be supplied by Iran, but some key components still rely on Iran, especially those that ensure missile operational effectiveness. They still have secret channels to transport these components, as they are not very large.”

Salisbury mentioned that these components include guidance systems, rocket engines, and parts like fins that require high precision machining.

The report points out that if the contents of the Anthropic report are true, then the weapons development group in northern Yemen is using the “Claude” model to develop multi-stage ballistic missiles with a range exceeding 1,200 miles, carrying hypersonic glide warheads. These weapons developers deliberately circumvent Anthropic's safety restrictions, concealing the true purpose of the guidance systems from the AI model.

Anthropic stated that there is currently no evidence to prove they have successfully created “combat-ready equipment,” but “we have evidence that the relevant personnel have built an offline simulation toolkit that does not rely on ‘Claude’.” (Translated by Wang Dongdong)