Dual-Use Technology

A dual-use technology can serve legitimate civilian purposes but can also be adapted for harmful, coercive or military purposes. In artificial intelligence, the same model or capability may produce social benefits while enabling misuse, depending on its design, access, data and deployment context. Dual-use potential does not mean that the technology is inherently harmful.

Why AI has dual-use potential

Many AI systems are general-purpose: one underlying capability can be transferred across sectors, scaled rapidly and combined with other digital tools. Their outputs may also be reproduced at low cost, allowing beneficial innovation and harmful use to spread faster than traditional controls.

• Risk depends not only on technical capability but also on the user, purpose and deployment environment.
• Dual use describes the potential for beneficial and harmful applications; misuse is the actual application of a system for an improper or harmful purpose.

Representative applications

• Generative AI can support education, research and software development, but can also facilitate impersonation, disinformation or cyber-enabled harm.
• Computer vision can assist medical diagnosis and disaster response, but may also enable intrusive surveillance or military targeting.
• Language and predictive systems can improve public-service delivery and fraud detection, while biased data or inappropriate deployment may produce discrimination and exclusion.

Managing dual-use risks

Governance should be proportionate to the system's capability, likely use and potential harm. Since risks can emerge throughout the AI life cycle, safeguards must extend from design and training to deployment and monitoring.

• Developers should conduct risk and impact assessments, test system behaviour and document known limitations.
• High-risk capabilities may require access controls, privacy and security protections, human oversight and traceable accountability.
• Post-deployment monitoring, incident reporting and periodic evaluation help detect unforeseen or evolving misuse.
• Safeguards should preserve beneficial innovation while applying the principles of safety, transparency, fairness and accountability.