A flagship presence at DSEI – which is taking place at ExCel London on 12-15 September – will be the increased number of naval ships on the waterfront. This presence will include three frigates (from the UK Royal Navy [RN], German Navy, and Royal Netherlands Navy), a Belgian Maritime Component patrol vessel, and several smaller ships including two RN P2000 Archer-class patrol craft.
“The dock space is considerably fuller than the last couple of events,” Rear Admiral Jon Pentreath, a retired RN officer who is Military Advisor to Clarion Events Defence and Security, told Naval News.
Ashore at the event, the RN will be represented by several senior speakers, with the First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Sir Ben Key giving the keynote address.
Rear Adm Pentreath said that more than 200 companies will be attending as first-time participants, with many representing non-traditional defence sectors like artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomous systems communities.
DSEI is a multidomain event, covering the air, cyber, and space domains alongside its established focus on land and maritime matters. Under the 2023 show’s overall theme of ‘Achieving an Integrated Force’, the event forums will discuss key developments in digital integration of physical capabilities across these domains, including through using new technologies like AI and autonomy, Rear Adm Pentreath explained.
As regards AI, DSEI will host a one-star officer-level discussion panel, led by the RN, looking at how to exploit technologies like AI to improve capabilities. “For quite a lot of maritime autonomous systems to be properly functional and capable, they must have ‘real’ AI thinking ability,” said Rear Adm Pentreath, adding that an important element of this discussion includes the place and role of the human operator in the decision-making loop.
As regards autonomous systems, their operational impact as part of integrated networks that support both traditional naval tasks like anti-submarine warfare and emerging naval tasks like seabed warfare is increasingly evident. Yet, the maritime domain – especially the sub-surface element – presents significant physical challenges in using autonomous systems.
“To be properly autonomous, such systems rely on a lot of data being transferred. I suspect there will be a lot of discussion around how to achieve that properly integrated force in the maritime, which is a complex, thorny problem.”
RADM (Ret) Jon Pentreath, Military Advisor to Clarion Events Defence and Security
The UK armed forces will use DSEI to display an operational-level joint and combined integration scenario, which will be shown on the UK Strategic Command (STRATCOM) and RN stands and will include a live feed from a dock-side demonstration.
The importance of autonomous systems from the strategic to operational to tactical levels in contemporary warfare has been underscored in the Russo-Ukraine war. Reports from the war routinely detail the roles, uses, and effects of such systems. “I think we will see more and more, in terms of autonomy,” said Rear Adm Pentreath.
The war is shaping DSEI in other ways. The Ukrainian government will have a pavilion at the event for the first time, with the pavilion hosting Ukraine’s state-owned foreign trade enterprise Spets Techno Export; an official delegation will also visit the show. Moreover, the war’s wider impact on Euro-Atlantic stability will likely be reflected in DSEI’s broad discussions. “I think at the most strategic level …. there’s a much broader understanding of the critical importance of defence and security,” said Rear Adm Pentreath.
