CIA: Studies in AI and Human Intelligence
Among the articles in the unclassified version of the CIA’s journal, Studies in Intelligence (Vol. 70, No. 1, March 2026) is one titled, “Espionage in Our AI Future: Why Human Intelligence Still Matters.”
[ Read SemperVerus articles on the topic of THREAT ANALYSIS ]
In it, the author, a former CIA case officer (CO) in Latin America, says, “While AI [artificial intelligence] will transform HUMINT [human intelligence] (along with most everything else), this, our oldest form of intelligence collection, will in fact grow in importance. For one thing, as AI makes high-quality technical collection cheaper and more accessible, it thereby boosts HUMINT’s value on the margin. AI will supercharge disinformation and fabrication—and that makes HUMINT’s ability to build and test source reliability over time, and corroborate technical collection, more important than ever. And as AI undermines the security of electronic communications, tradecraft techniques which COs have used for millennia—such as dead drops and brush passes—will find new relevance…”



