'Blackout bomb' and robot military advisers – Seoul's answer to combating threats from North Korea

South Korea appears to be adopting high-tech options in its efforts to combat current and future threats from rival North Korea. Seoul is reportedly working on a non-lethal graphite bomb that can allegedly shut down the North's power grids. South Korea's defence ministry is also reportedly developing an artificial intelligence (AI) system, which will allegedly function as a robotic adviser to military commanders.

The so-called "blackout bomb" reportedly spreads chemically treated carbon graphite fibres over electric facilities, which in turn will short-circuit power grids, essentially disrupting them. The non-lethal weapon is reportedly being developed as part of Seoul's pre-emptive "Kill Chain" programme by the Agency of Defense Development (ADD).

"All technologies for the development of a graphite bomb led by the ADD have been secured. It is in the stage where we can build the bombs anytime," an unspecified military official said, Yonhap reported.

Meanwhile, South Korea's ministry of defence is reportedly developing an AI system, which it hopes to establish by 2025, to help military commanders make operational decisions. The AI system will allegedly be fed data on North Korea's military forces, including its weapons, estimated infiltration routes, locations and more. The AI system will also reportedly store data on South Korea's military forces.

"If we use AI in operational command decision making, military commanders will be able to get support in certain details that humans may overlook," Yonhap cited an unspecified source as saying. "I think it's not going to take long to see AI being a core assistant to commanders."

IBTimes UK has not independently verified claims of South Korea's military forces developing or using these technologies.