Includes bibliographical references (pages 283-399) and index.

Introduction : the age of lethal empowerment -- Classic models of military innovation : shaped by the nuclear revolution -- The arsenal for anarchy : when and how violent individuals and groups innovate -- Dynamite and the birth of modern terrorism -- How dynamite diffused -- The Kalashnikov and the global wave of insurgencies -- How the Kalashnikov diffused -- Open innovation of mobilization : social media and conquering digital terrain -- Open innovation of reach : from AK-47s to drones, robots, smartphones, and 3-D printing -- An army of one launches many : autonomy and artificial intelligence -- Conclusion : strategy in an age of lethal empowerment.

"This path-breaking study is about how ordinary people are gaining the means to be extraordinarily lethal. States are also concentrating their technological power, but their gains lag behind a shift in relative capacity that is already disrupting the role of conventional armed forces. The dispersal of emerging technologies such as robotics, cyber weapons, 3-D printing, autonomous systems, and various forms of artificial intelligence is widening popular access to unprecedented destructive power. Based on hard lessons from previous waves of lethal technology such as dynamite and the assault rifle, the book explains what the future may hold and how we should respond"-- Provided by publisher.