The South China Morning Post (July 8) disclosed that a research team in China has unveiled an underwater drone that can recognise, follow and attack an enemy submarine without human instruction.

The secret project, funded by the military, was partially declassified last week with the publication of a paper that gave a rare glimpse into a field test of the unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), seemingly in the Taiwan Strait, more than a decade ago. The Drone submarine test-fired in Taiwan Strait without human input, declassified details suggest. Testing showed it could detect a mock craft, use artificial intelligence to identify its origin, and hit it with a torpedo.