Professor Armin Krishnan, an expert in security studies and emerging technologies, discusses the transition toward fifth-generation warfare, where conflict shifts from physical battlefields to psychological manipulation and societal destabilization. Krishnan describes how non-kinetic methods, such as information warfare and digital surveillance, allow actors to achieve political goals without traditional military force. The conversation also explores the chilling possibilities of neurowarfare and directed energy weapons, citing Havana Syndrome as a potential example of remote cognitive interference. Additionally, he examines the rise of a technocratic "shadow government" that utilizes biometrics, AI targeting, and autonomous robotics to enforce control. Ultimately, Krishnan warns that these advancements are leading toward a totalitarian era where the boundaries between the state, technology, and the human body are increasingly blurred.

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Websites

Website https://politicalscience.ecu.edu/about/faculty-staff/krishnan

Books https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B001JSHEJW

About Professor Armin Krishnan

Armin Krishnan is an Associate Professor at East Carolina University. He was Director of Security Studies from 2016 to 2025. He has previously taught intelligence courses as a Visiting Assistant Professor in the National Security Program at the University of Texas at El Paso and held research associate positions at the University of Southampton and Salford University.

He has academic degrees in political science, intelligence studies, and security studies from the University of Munich and Salford University, UK. His research has focused on novel aspects of contemporary warfare, including the privatization and outsourcing of military services, the ethics of military robotics, targeted killing and drone warfare, military neuroscience, and psychological warfare. His most recent book is on Havana Syndrome: A Threat to National Security published by Bloomsbury Academic (2025).

*Podcast intro music used with permission is from the song "The Queens Jig" by the fantastic "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)