Navy risks very bad day in 2026 cyberwar due to China's advances, urge greater investment and focus on information warfare
• U.S. Naval Institute members believe the Navy is unprepared for cyberwarfare compared to China's advances. If action isn't taken, the Navy risks a "very bad day" at the start of a 2026 cyberwar.
• The authors argue the Navy lacks a strategic, operational, and tactical view of future warfare over the next 5-10 years as technologies like AI and quantum computing advance.
• China has been planning and waging information warfare since the mid-1990s. It can now use its control of tech ecosystems and supply chains to its advantage in war.
• A 2023 war scenario suggests the U.S. Navy did not commit to an information "cold war" and so was unprepared when attacked by China's cognitive warfare capabilities.
• The authors urge the Navy to treat the EM-cyber environment as an essential warfighting domain on par with land, sea, air, and space. More investment and change is needed to avoid defeat.